Catharsis & Apotheosis
by AlSmash
Summary: What if the events of Kamine Island had ended differently with Suzaku executing his best friend and worst enemy? And what if the Gods would not stand idly by? What would change? What would continue? But most importantly of all: How can Lelouch continue the rebellion when he no longer has his Geass? Revamp currently underway
1. Divergence

Prologue

Divergence

"It" had been called a variety of things over the years, from the simple and mundane, to the fantastical.

"It" had been cried to, cursed, pleaded with, disavowed, yet "It" still remained, stubbornly resistant to any changes, even as the world changed around it.

But things were changing, not by any design of "It" but it was happening nonetheless as the threat was growing.

Even though "It" was a collection of various personas and subconscious that could never agree to anything, it could agree to something in this case. That the existential threat that is facing "Them" was one in which it could no longer be ignored.

But how to deal with it was the issue was difficult for "It" to deal with. Because of the fact that "It" required an agreement and that "It" was in a state of constant conflict relegated any decision to a sheer impossibility.

But that didn't stop "It" from seeking other means to impose "It's" influence upon others in the most minutes of ways…

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_How bothersome_, CC thought as the Siegfried began its attack, _to think that we were so close._

She had every belief that there was only one person who would have known the identity of Zero as that of Lelouch Vi Britania, and he would also know, thanks to his access to C's World, exactly where the one weakness that Lelouch had would be.

She bit her lip, running through the situation, even as the warnings for the Gawain were sounding in the cockpit, letting her know that what little energy it had left was fast becoming depleted as the Float System sucked away what was left of it.

And the Siegfried launched its attack, tearing away from the left leg of the Gawain as she targeted the Siegfried.

_Don't die, you said, _she thought amusedly, launching the finger-mounted slash harkens and digging them into the Siegfried to the howls of Orange, _good for you I'm not one of those girls that let you down._

She then fought to drag it towards the ocean, intent on taking it into the depths where they would quickly reach crush depth.

"I WON'T LET YOU," screamed Orange, causing her to frown as the Siegfried suddenly veered away, swinging her around even as she fought the Siegfried's massive vernier capacity.

_This is going to suck_, she thought, as she redlined the Float System, driving the Gawain and the Siegfried towards the oncoming ground of Kamine Island, the ground rushing up towards her at such a blurring speed as she drove both it and the Siegfried into the ground in a cataclysmic trash, the Gawain being thrown off as the harkens detached and flying through the air as the Siegfried's harkens, devastating as weapons, turned into liabilities as they proceeded to tear the Siegfried apart as they dug into the ground.

The Gawain wasn't spared from the devastation, as its power finally went out, it flew into a rockwall beside the entrance to ruins, when Lelouch was, the Glide System crumbling like a cheap children's toy.

_Yep, this sucks_, a part of C.C.'s mind mused, being thrown around like a ragdoll in the cockpit, before it came to a rest, her arm bending at an unnatural angle in the impact as her shoulder separated, causing her to wince in agony as the remnants came to a stop.

But then it felt like electricity shot through her, causing her eyes to snap wide as they rolled up into the back of her head as her body went into convulsions.

But instead of any type of mental effects, C.C.s brain coldly registered everything, as if the event was pure physiological, even as it felt like her body was on fire.

And then it was gone, and for C.C. she felt suddenly…..empty, as if a part of her had been ripped away, leaving her stuck trying to figure out what it was that was gone.

"You owe me a lifetime supply Lelouch," she grumbled as she started to get her from the cockpit, tenderly moving as she grimaced the driving agony in her arm.

But that was when she realized it, the pain wasn't dissipating, in fact, it was getting worse, and her shoulder wasn't reattaching.

She tested shrugging her shoulder, grinding her teeth as it not only worsened the pain, but her shoulder still refused to move, as if mocking her sudden vulnerability.

C.C. started laughing, for the first time in a long time, even as the pain wracked her body, as her mind concluded exactly what was happening, as if her wish had been fulfilled. But the laugh abated as she tried to figure out what happened…

But then it turned to concern, as she suddenly remembered a contact she had detected as she gone down, but the Gawain had reported the Lancelot approaching.

Concern replacing happiness, she moved to activate the emergency hatch, the back of the cockpit in, opening the top to the cockpit and slowly dragging herself out, flopping down to the ground, causing her to groan painfully as her ribs protested the landing.

"Where is Zero?!"

C.C. dragged herself up to stare down Jeremiah Gottwald, looking down on her, blood trailing down from his head, but there was no doubt he was still capable, judging by the way he was holding his gun.

She looked him up and down, before laughing, remembering now exactly where she had seen Jeremiah before, the memory being jogged as she slowly pulled herself up.

"You don't know it," she said, bemusedly, "do you?"

"Know what," Jeremiah demanded.

"Who Zero is."

"I don't care who he is, I just want to know where he is," he sneered in response moving the gun closer to her face.

"As straight thinking as you were in Aries palace," she murmured, her eyes flicking back to him, "Do you think Empress Marianne would approve of you trying to kill her son," C.C. asked, "after all, you swore to protect her and her family."

"Empress Marianne's children are dead, killed by the Japanese."

"Then you should go in there and make sure for yourself," she replied, motioning her head, "maybe you'll save him before he gets himself killed."

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It was unfair and completely to his disadvantage, Lelouch vi Britannia raged as he attached the liquid Sakuradite to his chest, Nunnally was just on the side of that door and his best friend…and worst enemy was on a revenge bender for Euphemia.

And Kallen was completely frozen up in shock because of his identity as he continued his confrontation with Suzaku, back and forth as his eyes traced towards Kallen who had stood there stupidly. Another one of his damn mistakes, the lies had piled up too quickly for even him to defeat, and now this.

"Nothing that happens now is any of your concern! Your very existence is a mistake! You need to be erased from the Earth! I'LL TAKE CARE OF NUNNALLY!"

_So that is how it is_, a part of Lelouch's mind coldly processed as everything went red, his weapon aimed at his best friend and enemy.

"SUZAKU," he screamed.

"LELOUCHE!"

They both fired at the same time, hitting Lelouch's gun and knocking it upwards, but his round tore into the left side of Suzaku's face, scraping along the cheek before going through the wireless and his ear and tearing a chunk away, before continuing onward.

It was as if he suddenly went into autopilot, but Suzaku jumped up towards Lelouch, spinning around and kicking away Lelouch's gun, before landing on top of him, ripping away the liquid sakuradite bomb, and aiming his gun down at Lelouch.

Lelouch could only look up with a grim smile as he looked into Suzaku's eyes, before recognizing what was going on, as his eyes were lit up in the familiar light of a person under Geass.

It was all Lelouch could register before the gun was lowered to his head, and the world entered slow motion as he saw the trigger being pulled, the flash, and then nothing.

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Kallen could only watch in horror as the proceeding go on, as Lelouch and Suzaku fired and then Suzaku ruthlessly executed Lelouch in front of her without a word, as if he were a methodical executioner, one in the head, and two in the heart.

The entire time this had gone on, a war had been waged inside Kallen as she had fought over the two differing identities, that of Lelouch the student and Zero the revolutionary. She felt soiled at having been used so horribly and not seeing it, the idea that Zero had been with her wherever she had gone, using her. But a more private part of her looked at the aspect that yes Lelouch had used her, but he had promised Japan for him using her for whatever little war he was planning against Britannia.

But that had been gone out the window, as Suzaku deposited those rounds into their leader, and the leader that she secretly loved, despite the man in the mask was a man she loathed. It was a dichotomy of madness.

Suzaku looked helpless and lost as he looked down at the corpse of Lelouch, as if he was surprised by his very actions, but for Kallen, it was the moment she snapped, as every instinct to flee left her as she raised her gun, and fired for the man that she had loved….but now was gone.

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Suzaku was stunned by what had just gone on, one moment he had been there, the next moment he was on autopilot executing Lelouch, and he had no control of his body other than the mantra of "live" running through his head over and over as he had executed it.

He looked at the body of work before him; his best friend's eyes stared lifelessly at him as the gun in his hand seemed heavier than any object he had ever handled.

So gone into his own world he had no warning as Kallen's first round slammed into his shoulder, causing "live" to ring through his head as he looked towards the source of a screaming Kallen charging him, her gun now leveled and firing.

Everything screamed for him to flee, and he just did that, moving as evasively as possible as the rounds bracketed him, but not one hitting him as he made it out of the entrance, totally on autopilot as he headed for the Lancelot where it was hidden.

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Kallen watched as Suzaku ran, her finger kept pulling the trigger even though it was empty as she could only look as Suzaku fled, tears trailing down her face as she hugged the gun tightly, trying her best not to cry.

She had even failed to take revenge on him, not supporting him, then not killing his killer who had done it right in front of her. She had failed everyone, including Zero.

The gun dropped from her hand as she walked slowly over to the body of the man she loved and loathed, the tears refusing to end as they trailed down her face as she dropped to her knees beside him, looking into his lifeless eyes.

"I'm sorry," she said quietly at first, "I'm so sorry," she said louder, her head bowed as her hands were balled up at her knees, "I couldn't do it, I couldn't…."

Before she knew what she was doing, her hands were hugging his body, pulling it close to her, cradling his body, even as it became cold, the tears flowing freely now as she tried to hold back the choking sobs.

"If I could say to you that I love you fool...I would sell my soul to the devil...after all...I already sold my heart to you…"

She knew it was disgusting, she knew it was wrong, but she couldn't stop herself, even as she fought against it, her heart overriding her logic, as she leaned in, and kissed him.

It was then that the world dropped out from under her.


	2. Rebirth

Aria 01

Rebirth

It was curious, a part of Lelouch thought with amusement and curiosity, he was not really a religious man, but he had expected to find himself burning in the fiery pits of hell right about now.

Well, this sure wasn't Hell, but this wasn't Heaven either, no pearly gates, he added as he stood there taking in his surroundings.

No, instead of any pearly gates, it looked like he was in the middle of a massive construct, almost like an old clock, with gears all around him turning what appeared to be an ancient machine.

"Lelouch," a voice beckoned, causing him to turn to the source, identifying C.C. almost immediately.

"C2, what is going on here," Lelouch demanded, "what is this place?"

"It's…..a stage," C.C. replied, "for the Gods."

"Gods. What do you mean?"

"Let's just say, the origins of your Geass, is from here," she replied, "but we're not exactly here, per se."

"What do you mean by that," he responded.

"Turn around."

Doing as she commanded, he did, and then he looked up into the sky, eyes following what looked like an anchor hook, to the sight of what looked like Jupiter.

"It's hard to explain right now," C.C. said, "but something's happened, I don't know what, but….Lelouch, you do not need to worry about our contract anymore. It's something I'll explain when we get back."

"Get back? I'm dead," Lelouch replied angrily, "Suzaku did a pretty good job on that."

She smiled wanly, "No….you aren't."

Lelouch stopped for a moment, staring at her for another long moment, the gears in his head acting much like the gears around them, before it clicked and his eyes widened in surprise.

"You mean…"

She nodded, "I don't know how it's possible, because you weren't fully capable of fulfilling that contract….but you have the Code Lelouch, and I can only tell you that I think it is because that they have decided to change everything."

"You mean you don't know?"

"The Code is only meant to be transferred upon Geass attaining full power and the contract being fulfilled, the fact is that neither was fulfilled. But you now have my Code Lelouch…and as we're talking, I'm dying for good this time."

"C2…"

She smiled coyly, "thank you Lelouch, but do me a favor…when you wake up, don't go too hard on her…"

"What do you mean….don't go too hard on who?"

"You'll see."

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Lelouch's eyes snapped open to the feeling of a pair of lips pressed firmly upon his…red hair in his vision.

He could almost hear C.C.'s laughter in his head as he discerned exactly who was kissing him.

_Forgive her, my ass_, Lelouch thought, but at the same time, it was like a library had suddenly been opened for him, and was being fed into his head, all the information concerning Geass and contracts, and then it hit him again, as his mind processed the information at blazing speeds.

_I can use this_, he thought quietly, noting that despite everything, the kiss actually felt…kind of pleasant.

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It could only be described as an out of body experience as Kallen looked upon the throne room of Britannia, a room she had never been in before, but immediately recognized thanks to the broadcasts that had been done over the years.

The room was packed with nobles now, with a sense of uneasiness hovering over the room like a storm cloud.

_Just what is this supposed to be,_ she thought, _what am I seeing?_

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of the massive doors to the chamber opening.

"Announcing Prince Lelouch vi Britannia, seventeenth heir to the royal Britannian Imperial throne!"

_Lelouch?_

She then caught a glimpse of him, what looked like a miniature Lelouch, dressed in the finest of clothing, complete with a cape as he marched in, his face a mask of righteous indignation and determination.

Even while the nobles all bowed their heads to the young Britannian Prince, Kallen could not help but hear the murmurs and conversations.

"I heard Empress Marianne was killed inside of the Britannian Palace"

"There's no way terrorists could've gotten in there."

"Which means that the real assassins must have-"

"Shh! Beware my friend, you'll regret it if anyone hears that kind of talk around the palace."

"And yet the boy remains, even though his mother is dead."

"It's over."

"And the Ashford family who stood behind him is finished as well."

"And his sister, the princess?"

"I understand she was shot in the legs and that she has lost her sight."

"Blindness caused by trauma though, isn't it?"

"No difference, now she can't even be married off for political gain."

All the murmurs quickly died as Lelouch stopped at the stairs approaching the imperial throne, where the Emperor sat.

"Hail Your Majesty, my mother the Empress is dead."

"Old news," the elder rumbled, "what of it?"

"What of it," the boy exclaimed.

"You sought an audience with the Emperor of Britannia simply to inform me of that," his head turned to an aide, "send the next one in, I have no time for these childish games."

The young boy ran up the stairs in response, screaming, "Father," as the guards moved to intercept the threat, only to be stopped with a raised hand.

"Yes, Your Majesty," they both shouted in unison.

"Why didn't you keep Mother out of harm's way? You're the Emperor, the greatest man in this nation, if not the world, you should've protected her and now you don't even visit Nunnally," he shouted, the indignation turning into fury as his eyes trembled.

"I've no use for that weakling."

"That weakling," Lelouch responded in confusion, taken back at the sudden statement, and Kallen could not help but find herself drawn into the emotion that was evident even to her, the stunned apprehension that the man that this Lelouch called father was calling his own child a weakling through no fault of her own.

"That is what it means to be royalty."

That would have been the end of it, the dismissal evident in the Emperor's tone, but Lelouch merely bowed his head, trembling, as he seemed to finally give into the anger and the grief that had consumed him, head slowly raising back up akin to a wolf that was baring its fangs at a larger predator.

"Then I don't want to be your heir, I give up my claim to the throne!"

The nobles all gasped, even as Kallen found herself gasping in unison with it well, it was unheard of for a royal to renounce his claim, no matter the circumstances.

"I'm sick of the fighting and scheming over who will succeed you Father, I have had enough."

"You are dead. You have always been dead to me, dead from the moment you were born. Who gave you the fine clothes you wear and comfortable home? The food you eat and your very life? All of those, I have given you, in short you are not nothing to me, because you have never existed. Yet you dare to speak such foolishness to me?!"

As he rose from the throne, the boy gave a yelp and fell back.

"Lelouch, you are dead, therefore you are not entitled to any rights. I am sending you and Nunnally to Japan, as prince and princess, you will serve as bargaining tools."

Suddenly, everything before her flashed, and she found herself in a new place, this time, what looked like Japan, and a storehouse was before her.

_Where am I now,_ she thought.

"You're at the Kururugi Shrine, a.t.b. 2010," Lelouch's voice responded behind her, causing her to whirl around in a gasp.

"Lelouch," she stammered, "but…how?!"

"You're seeing my memories," he said quietly, walking past her and towards the storeroom, looking in the open door, leaning against the frame.

"But….how….you're dead!"

He glanced over his shoulder his eyes looking at her.

"You're right…I was," he replied, before looking back in the room.

Kallen could now make out the voices coming from the shed, a pair of childlike voices talking back and forth, deciding to find out who it was, she walked forward beside Lelouch, taking in the sight before her.

It was quite obvious that it was a younger version of Lelouch and Nunnally, laughing with another boy whose back was to her, but the hair was eerily familiar.

"Suzaku Kururugi," Lelouch answered for her, "we used to be good friends once upon a time. Funny how fate can be so fickle at times."

"Lelouch, you're saying that you were dead, are you telling me that you're alive," she asked, "and this….is merely your memories?"

"Yes."

"This has to be a hallucination," she muttered, "I saw Suzaku execute you!"

"Kallen, there are forces out there you don't understand," Lelouch finally said, turning around to her, and this time, she saw it as it lit up, her eyes bugging.

Planted on Lelouch's forehead, was the an emblem much like a bird with its wings outstretched, almost immediately she recognized it as the core of the Black Knights emblem, but without the sword stabbing through it.

"What is that," she demanded.

"It's what is called a Code," Lelouch replied, "and it's a long story."

Kallen looked at him for a moment, then looked past him towards the younger version of Nunnally.

"So this is why you're fighting," she said quietly, "why you left us at Tokyo."

She saw him hesitate for a moment, before nodding in acknowledgment.

"She's everything to me," Lelouch replied, "All of this, I've done for her, and all so that she can live in a world where she isn't scorned as a weakling."

She nodded.

"That's why you wore the mask, to protect her."

"If people knew who I was, she would not be safe….but I guess it really didn't make a difference, did it?"

"Zero…no Lelouch, I'm sorry, if I had known…"

"And what of it," he responded, "what would have done if you had known?"

She bowed her head in shame, "I wouldn't have let him kill you."

His features softened, even though inside, he was grinning as evilly as possible, he had her, now all he had to do was push the right buttons.

_All tasks at hand have been cleared, now for the final flourish_.

He stepped away from the door, causing Kallen to step back in response as well.

"Then I have an offer to make you, if you wish to protect me again," he declared, "what I offer you is a contract, with this contract, in exchange for this power I bestow upon you, you will agree to make my one wish come true. Accept this contract and you accept its conditions. While living in the world of humans, you will live unlike any other: a different providence, a different time, a different life. The power of the Empress will condemn you to stand above others, a lonely existence, be as a blessed figure, or an unholy bane. Are you willing to bear this power, this burden, by the sake of the world?"

She looked at him for a few moments, before nodding.

"Yes…but on two conditions," she replied, causing Lelouch to pause.

"And what might those conditions be?"

"Well," Kallen hesitated for a moment, finding herself at a loss of words and anxious, "the first is more of a condition, the second is more of a question."

"…Go on."

She looked at him severely now, a completely opposite from before, as if suddenly a bipolar case, as she jabbed her finger into his chest, "I don't want you to ever lie to me again. If we are going to….work together, then I need to know that I can trust you Lelouch."

He paused, looking at her for the longest time, and for a moment, Kallen swore he was going to call it off, and just as she was about to give it up he spoke in a low, slow tone.

"I cannot guarantee I will always be truthful," he said slowly, "but, I can promise that I will do my best not to lie to you Kallen. However, sometimes, those truths that you will learn, you will have to keep them hidden, as few can understand, less accept or tolerate with a calm mind some facts. That is the best I can offer to you."

She gave him a long look before nodding.

"Now what's the question," he asked impatiently.

She blushed then looked away, "It's nothing, just nevermind."

"No, you have made a big deal about it," Lelouch demanded, "I want to know what the last question."

"No, I don't need to ask it."

"No, you will," Lelouch shot back.

"Fine," Kallen shouted, composing herself and hesitating again.

_Exactly what the hell does she want to ask that bothers her_¸ Lelouch thought irritably.

"What do you think of me," Kallen asked, the averting his gaze, blushing again.

"What do I think of you," Lelouch asked, baffled for a moment, this was completely different from the confident, cockpit, daresay it arrogant, but never like this. Exactly what kind of question was she asking.

"Just answer me," she shouted.

"You're a capable pilot and valuable ally. You're strong…proud…kind…," he trailed off as he noted Kallen blushing even further, "are you okay?"

"Yeah…I'm fine," she replied attempting to not appear crestfallen at his announcement, "so, this contract, what does it require."

"You already entered it when you kissed me," Lelouch replied as neutrally as he could, it wouldn't do any good for the both of them to be distracted, there were other concerns at the moment to focus upon. Better to get that moving.

"Very well then," Lelouch replied, "it's time for us to get to work Kallen, I have no doubt that the Black Knights are on the verge of defeat even with Toudou's leadership."

"What about Nunnally?"

"…I hate myself for saying this. . .Now that I think of it, she will be safe for now, especially with the fact that Suzaku will report that he blew up my brains. Otherwise she's worthless in a sense to Charles, unless I announce that Zero is alive to the world...No. Right now my best bet is to let the world think that Zero its dead and use that time to regroup and build up."

Placing a hand on her shoulder, his eyes boring into hers, "When the time comes for our return.. . .it will be when she's safely in my protection once again…Until then, let's get to work."

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Suddenly she was back, looking into the open eyes of Lelouch, her lips locked with his.

It was probably one of the most awkward moments in her entire life, her brain catching up to what had gone on, wherever she was, now back here, kissing the man she thought dead, but now obviously alive.

She shot back, getting her distance from Lelouch, as he braced himself up.

"We'll talk about this later, for now we need to…"

"ZERO!"

Both heads turned to the source of the shout, part curse, part exultant high, as Orange stood there gun drawn and leveled on the Lelouch.


	3. The King is Dead, Long Live the Demon

Aria Deux

"The King is Dead, Long Live the Demon Part 1"

"What are you saying? That one of Marianne's children is Zero? That's preposterous," Jeremiah Gottwald shouted.

_Or is it_, he thought stopping himself. He had to admit there were some things that didn't add up in his mind in regards to Zero. One of those was his seemingly intimate understanding of Britannian politics and tactics, that was one, but one of the most critical indicators that pointed towards Zero being of noble origins.

No, this woman was trying to mislead him, his enemy was Zero. There was no middle ground. For the sake of his honor and Britannia, he could not falter.

He refocused on his green-haired captive, who now seemed to be slipping away.

There must be internal injuries, he realized with mix of conflicted emotions warring on his conscience. Why now when his path was obvious before him did he question it.

_Because you want to believe you can reclaim your honor and wash away your failure_, that traitorous part of his mind whispered.

"If Zero is Marianne's child, why are they fighting their homeland?"

"Ask him yourself," she replied in a murmur that seemed to become even weaker as her body labored to breath, "I've been waiting for this for so long...just when you go in there...take me with you...and know the truth. He's the salvation...you seek."

Her eyes slid shut as she became still a smile plastered on her face, as if happy for death. Leaving in her midst no more answers for Jeremiah Gottwald, only more questions.

Why she would be happy to die, he thought but before he could pursue any further, the echoes of gunfire snapped him back to the task at hand.

_Zero_.

He needed an answer that was the only way to calm this storm. With that in mind he moved into the ruins, to the sound of additional gunshots and footfalls rapidly approaching.

Slipping into the shadows, he held himself close to the wall, as the white form of Suzaku Kururugi darted past, but the white pilot suit he was wearing was now starting to gain the accent of red, from the blood trailing down his cheek and ear that he was trying to staunch now with his hand.

_Kururugi was here? Why is he running away?!_

Making sure the coast was clear, he crept further into the ruins, gun at the ready as he came to the opening, gun snapping and acquiring the two figures on the elevated platform before a door, the figure in red on her knees at the side of the black figure.

Immediately it snapped as he recognized the figure with the pool of blood slowly spreading as Zero, lifeless eyes staring into nothing. But it was enough as he fought to prevent his knees from buckling, as the young woman wrapped her arms around him.

It just couldn't be, it wasn't possible, Jeremiah thought as he fought to keep himself under control, finding it even harder to do so as he felt almost ready to join that woman in grieving, even as a part of him screamed to kill her, that they were both his enemy. The internal bickering reaching a crescendo in his head as both his honor to country and duty to his promise resonated within him.

His breath caught as she leaned down and kissed Lelouch, no Zero. But it turned to even more stunned as the eyes of Zero blinked.

_It's not possible,_ Jeremiah thought, _he was dead._

_Or maybe your mind is playing tricks on you, _that bastard voice whispered in his head.

"ZERO!"

This caused both of them to snap their heads to him, both completely on-guard, the redheads head snapping to a pistol by the door.

"Don't move," he warned, his gun acquiring the redhead, but his eyes focused on Zero.

_He looks so much like Lady Marianne's son_, he thought, hardening himself for what was going to come next.

"Zero, I have only one question for you," he said carefully, hardening his resolve as his eyes searched Lelouch's impassive violet eyes, the whispers of turmoil still haunting his mind, "your friend claimed you were the son of Empress Marianne...If you are, why are you fighting against Britannia, your homeland?"

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He just couldn't catch a break, his mind squalled as now Orange had a gun on them. Part of him argued charging him, but even he did not know the limits of his immortality yet, the ratio of damage versus healing time, and even the other parameters of this new ability.

His eyes slid to Kallen, who looked at Orange with the look of a caged animal.

Of course, he could have Kallen use her Geass, but he wasn't sure of what type of ability it was, if it was like his, then it would be useful, but if it was something different then it would not be beneficial to them if he had her use it, she would only end up dead and he would end up back at worse than square one.

Kallen seemed to be thinking the same thing, because she was seemed reluctant to use it, her eyes darting over to his as he gave an imperceptible nod.

"…why are you fighting against Britannia, your homeland?"

It was an impactful question, one that would determine the course of the next events, but for Lelouch, it was reflexive and easy, as if pre-rehearsed in his mind for just this moment.

"Because I am Lelouch vi Britannia," he declared with scorn lacing his tone, "I stand against that man who took my mother's life, my sister's legs and sight, and our futures from us. And there is no one or nothing that will stand between me and justice."

If Lelouch had expected that to be the end and for Orange to actually choose to open fire as he had expected, he was sorely mistaken, as Orange suddenly dropped to a knee bowing his head.

"Forgive me, Your Majesty, for my intransigence, if I had known you were the son of Lady Marianne, I would have never raised arms against you

To say he was stunned would be an understatement, to suddenly have the man who until now been hell-bent to kill him now prostrate before him begging for forgiveness. It took even his brilliant analytical mind to process this change in information. And even then it was tough to digest as Lelouch fought to replace his cold indifferent mask.

"Why are you begging forgiveness? I'm no longer a member of the royal family now."

"I swore my loyalty to Lady Marianne," Jeremiah replied, his voice trembling, "she was my first assignment. I looked up to her. I wanted to protect her and the children and I failed all of you."

"That's why you joined the Pure Bloods."

A small nod was the only deviation to the position Jeremiah held, confirming Lelouch's observation.

"Yes, Your Majesty, Pure Bloods are always the first unit into an occupied Area. I could not save you, but I could avenge you. But now…"

"Lelouch, step away," Kallen demanded, breaking the exchange, as she held his discarded handgun. The fact that she had quietly been able to slip away and grab it while he was focused on Jeremiah before him was testament to her skills.

He calmly shot her a withering glare which caused her pause.

"But Lelouch, he's tried to kill you...he's a Britannian."

"And?"

Kallen paused a moment before lowering her gun, decision made.

That possible disaster diverted he refocused upon Jeremiah who still was kneeled, head bowed.

"Very well, rise, Jeremiah Gottwald. I shall honor your oath."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

"However, you have sworn to serve me in any capacity. As such, I order you to return to Britannia. You seem to be affiliated with the Code R program judging by your current situation."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

"I want you to gather intelligence on the Code R program, and whatever programs that exists within Britannia concerning Geass. When I am ready, I will recall you to my side, Lord Jeremiah. This is your only chance Lord Jeremiah, you fail me here, and you will have failed your only opportunity to restore your honor. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, Your Majesty. I will not fail you, nor besmirch the memory of Empress Marianne."

"Very well then. Go, and confirm Kururugi's report of me as dead to the Britannians."

He bowed and left, leaving Kallen and Lelouch.

"Lelouch," Kallen started, as Lelouch walked over to where the halves of his mask were, "I don't understand, why are you trusting him?"

"Because an oath like that is a very serious thing," he replied picking up the two halves, "when a Britannian swears an oath to you, they are swearing their life in service to you. To be an oath breaker is one of the most serious stigmas in Britannian culture. In its own way, I am using Britannian customs as a weapon with Orange. He might have sworn an oath to my mother, but now he is mine."

"Like me," Kallen said quietly.

"Previous, I would answer in the affirmative," Lelouch replied, before shaking his head and chuckling, "but now? We're accomplices. Co-equal partners in this struggle. I can no more use you as a pawn than you can use me as a crutch for you wish for a free Japan. It means a lot more work for you, but I think you will find this contract….beneficial."

She fought the urge to blush at the choice of wording and the cool delivery in which he delivered it, even though it was stereotypical Lelouch/Zero, there was just something in the delivery of it. "So now what, the battle has to be going badly."

"Indeed. And here is what we are going to do."

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"The front line is falling!"

"Lost contact with Yosuke."

"Ohgi is secure in mobile command center."

"We've lost Ashford, all units fall back to Sector C-4."

"Where the hell is Zero?!"

Colonel Kyoshiro Tohdoh could only grunt at the deluge of sobering and worsening reports as he slashed through a darting Gloucester that had tried to spear him with its anti-Knightmare lance, his quick reflexes saving him from certain death, but costing him the left arm of his custom Gekka, depriving him of any ranged weapons.

"Tohdoh, we need to retreat," Nagisa Chiba demanded, "the front is collapsing."

"Retreat to where," he barked angrily, "if we fail now we have no place to escape to."

"So what do we do then," she replied, significantly chastised by her superior.

"We buy time," he replied, falling back behind cover as Chiba rolled in front of him, firing her cannon providing suppressive fire, "we buy enough time so at least some of us can escape, we cannot let the rebellion fall here."

"But Zero..."

"Zero has abandoned us. I don't know why, but he's not here, there isn't going to be a miracle."

Silence filled the airwaves between them as she fell back, the previously pristine Gekka now filled with dents and chunks of armor gone from concentrated fire as she supported Tohdoh, it was a small miracle it was still functional.

"I'm out," she stated quietly, her Gekka holding its sword more tightly.

Tohdoh nodded in mute acknowledgement, it was a mistake to send the rest of the Swords to exfiltrate the Black Knight's command vehicle, but Ohgi was technically the second in command, and to lose that would be disastrous to their ability to coordinate what was left of the Black Knights forces.

His sensors detected yet another wave of Britannian Knightmares, seemingly sensing the opportunity to finish them, causing him to grit his teeth, as he moved his Gekka in front of hers.

"Tohdoh," she cried.

"Nagisa, fall back, I'll hold them here, gather what forces you can and set up a secondary line, I'll buy you some time. Don't argue with me."

"…Acknowledged."

Just as he was about to charge, the Guren suddenly dropped down out of nowhere, and grabbed a Gloucester in its Radiation Wave arm, bombarding it in unrestrained radiation as the Gloucester bubbled and burst like an rotted fruit, Tohdoh using that opening to spear a supporting Sutherland with his sword, while Chiba took even more fire, but still managed to take out the other Sutherland before dropping to a knee.

"Kouzuki, where's Zero," Tohdoh demanded.

". . . . . . . . Dead."

"What!?"

". . The Britannians managed to take a hostage that was vital for Zero. . .he went to try to extract it, only to have Suzaku Kururugi murder him in front of my eyes. . . . . "

"…I see."

"Where's Ohgi?"

"He's currently unconscious."

"Very well, before Zero died, he placed me in command."

"What?!"

"Just don't argue Tohdoh," causing Tohdoh to be taken aback at the passion in her tone, "he gave me a final set of orders before he died."

"Kouzuki, you aren't…."

"Prepare a retreat through the following points."

A series of coordinates flashed onto Tohdoh's console causing him to immediately begin protesting.

"Are you crazy Kouzuki?! This will take us through the reinforcements the Britannians are mustering not to mention their intact defenses that we bypassed on the way in."

"Trust me….this is Zero's Last Miracle. Are you with me Kyoshiro Tohdoh?"

"….Very well, it is not like I have any plan."

"Thank you."

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"All units continue the pressure," Guilford commanded, noting the Black Knight's were beginning to retreat on several fronts, "their lines are collapsing."

"All Hail Britannia," came a loud roar from the rest of the forces, bloodlust evident in their voices, which Guilford could not blame them for, they had been outnumbered and outgunned, and now were on the verge of victory.

So when a lone female voice suddenly started speaking on an open Britannian channel, he was taken by surprise.

"All units, begin Camlann Contingency."

_Camlaan Contingency, what the hell is that, _Guilford thought, though the answer wasn't long in coming.

"Lord Guilford, we're under attack!"

Suddenly alert boards all went crazy around him, as targeting grids began acquiring new targets, no longer the Eleven rebels, but them.

"Evasive," he shouted, suddenly shifting his unit as a shell landed where he was, the well-honed reflexes of the Britannian Knightmare pilots causing many to survive, but unfortunately, even training sometimes wasn't enough, as a autocannons from the main administrative building obliterated Edgar Darlton's Gloucester.

"Edgar," one of the Glaston's, Guilford couldn't tell which at the moment, cried.

_A rebellion? From the inside? How?_

"Lord Guilford, we're having reports of mutinies all over the Tokyo Settlement!"

"Calm down," he ordered, "any units in the area of the administrative center are to immediately fall back and recapture the building, if we don't regain that we will lose command and control."

"What about the Black Knights?! We can't let them escape!"

"And we have an uprising in the middle of the battle, we need to consolidate our forces and retake the center, or we will be crushed in between."

"Guilford, it's Schneizel," a new, familiar, voice entered the chaotic communications that were flooding Britannian "status report."

"Your Highness," Guilford responded, evading a Challenger III's linear cannon as the round flew by slamming into a chunk of debris, Claudio's machine gun tearing it to shreds, as they worked their way up the battlements to safer ground, "we have mass mutinies all over the Tokyo Settlement by Britannian forces, Black Knight forces seem to be falling back."

"How bad is the mutiny?"

"Your Highness, I'm not sure if we can reclaim the offensive, we've totally lost command and control, Princess Cornelia was last seen at the administrative gardens and I have lost contact with both her and General Darlton. What little forces I seem to have intact are in patched-together units and we might be hard-pressed to take back any of the infrastructure before this uprising is put down."

"Very well, hold out just a few minutes longer, the Pacific Fleet is in launching position and will launch to support the retaking of the Settlement."

"But the Black Knights-!"

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"Are broken," Schneizel el Britannia, hands steepled as he sat in a private conference room in Pendragon, the sudden changes in the Tokyo Settlement unsettling Odysseus before he could lead to join the forces, "signals have intercepted enemy transmissions, it seems Zero is dead. We're trying to confirm with Private Kururugi, but it seems that the level of chatter in Black Knight channels might prove that to be true. We'll focus on the enemy within, once we have put down the other settlements and this uprising, we will focus upon the Black Knights again. Your orders are to rendezvous with the Avalon and focus on the recovery of Princess Cornelia and General Darlton, the 7th Fleet will handle the mutineers. "

"Very well, Your Highness, thank you."

Schneizel cut the link with a motion of his hand as he went back to looking at the live feed being provided by the Avalon.

It was odd, the timing of the mutiny, why didn't it happen when the Black Knights launched their attack, with Cornelia to the front, they could have launched a pincer and crushed her forces in the middle of it. No, there was something else to it. It was too random, too coincidental with the Black Knight's withdrawal, and too messy for a long term strategic plan. It was worth more investigation.

"Colonel Farris, what is your signal intelligence reporting from the Tokyo Settlement mutineers."

"Your Highness," the man bowed in the camera, irritating Schneizel internally, they were in the middle of a battle, and these men kept to royal protocol, it disgusted him, it was inefficient and took time, which could cost lives, "as far as we can tell, other than the unknown communication from a female source, there has been absolutely no signal traffic from the mutineers."

"So what you are telling me Colonel, is that they are not communicating with one another."

Farris hesitated, sensing the edge in Schneizel's voice.

"Well, Your Highness, it appears so."

"Very well, carry on, General," he dismissed him, placing his elbow on the armrest and tilted his head to cradle the side of his head.

_No communication between mutineers, that is not possible, without coordination it's doomed to fail. Unless it is multiple mutinies erupting at once, but that is statistically impossible. No, there is something else in the shadows being played._

_It all comes back to Zero. That has to be it, so how did he do it? How did he set the stage for this event? There is too much information there to say that he doesn't have some kind of capability to brainwash people, if what happened to Euphemia is to be taken seriously. Then there is the Shikine Island incident with Kururugi unable to recall his actions._

_So, now. Did Kururugi kill Zero? That is the million pound question. If he is truly dead, then the resistance will completely collapse. Zero's leadership and successes was the only thing capable of uniting the various factions, with him gone, they do not have a replacement for him._

_The prime focus now will be to reestablish Britannian rule in Area 11 and make sure the Black Knights no longer have a hole to hide in again. I wonder who father will send for that._

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Empty, that was the only thing that could describe the feeling Suzaku had as he landed the Lancelot on the Avalon, the energy filler becoming exhausted as it came to a stop.

He had finally been able to stop the bleeding, but it had gotten over the cockpit, piloting the Lancelot with one hand while trying to use the first-aid kit to staunch the blood causing more of a mess than actually helping.

His mind was elsewhere that he hadn't even noticed the override being initiated to the Lancelot's cockpit bloc, until the gasp of Cecile snapped him out of his thoughts. The thoughts of betrayal, death, despair…and loss ripped at him more effectively than any Knightmare Frame could have done.

He still couldn't process the events, everything had been in autopilot as if he had no control of his body as he had killed his best friend and enemy without hesitation. One moment, the path was before him, he would detain Lelouch, bring him before the Emperor and gain a position in the Knights of the Round, using his best friend to further his position and bring to justice Euphemia's killer, the next, he was looking into the lifeless eyes of Lelouch, staring at him in blank accusation.

He fought the urge to throw-up, the image seared into his mind as the voices around him grew even more impassioned, his eyes locked forward.

"Suzaku," Cecile's voice invaded his thinking, as suddenly he had a pair of hands on him, snapping him out of his thoughts.

"I'm fine," he muttered, avoiding her worried eyes, "just replace the energy filler."

He was grateful Lloyd wasn't around, he didn't know how he could handle that man at this moment

As she ran her hand over the wound, gauging it, he winced.

"Zero," she asked quietly, half question, half answer.

He looked into her eyes, as the mask that he had built up, of all the rage, the sorrow, crumpled before her, as the tears began falling.

He didn't even notice as she wrapped her arms around him, the answer obvious enough for her as the medical staff came over towards the Lancelot.

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"Lord Guilford, Private Kururugi is currently receiving medical attention and will be able to sortie as soon as he is checked out."

_Setbacks,_ Guilford inwardly grimaced as he looked over the command base he had established at the Ashford Academy, it wasn't the greatest of defensive positions, but it was the only place outside of the administrative building that he could organize a resistance, and it seemed that the enemy forces avoided the area for some reason that he couldn't fathom.

"Just get me him immediately," he commanded, "I don't care what his condition is."

No, it was not wise to lose his cool, not when the fighting was getting worse, every attempt at infiltrating the area had been rebuffed by concentrated and coordinated fire, even though there was no indication of coordination, it was like fighting machines.

He glanced over the map before him, constantly changing as more information was brought in, even as he tuned out the chatter and frustration evident in some of the staff around him.

He wished he was as capable of Darlton or Her Highness in dealing with this kind of situation, give him an objective and a tactical situation and he excelled, give him a strategic problem, and it was safe to say he struggled.

"Recall Sir Ulen's unit back to sector C-7 to reinforce Sir Alec, we can't afford to lose that opening in the breach."

It had been almost an hour now since the mutiny had begun and even the 7th Fleet, with its brand new float equipped units were finding themselves getting attrited into nothingness.

"Lord Guilford, Prince Schneizel is requesting your counsel."

"Right," he replied, keeping the bitterness from his tone, as much as he worshipped Cornelia, there was just something that always rubbed himself the wrong way with Schneizel. It was the way he carried himself, deep down, he had no doubt that Schneizel was just as ruthless as the Emperor, he just kept it well-hidden. He doubted Cornelia even suspected it.

He tapped the comm. on his ear, opening the line that would connect him to Pendragon.

"Your Highness."

"Guilford, it seems that I was mistaken in the forces that would be necessary to retake the Tokyo Settlement. This calls for a change in plans, your forces are concentrated at the Ashford Academy, is that correct?"

"…Yes, Your Highness," _what is his angle here_.

"Very well, you are to recall all of your forces to the Ashford Academy immediately."

Guilford stopped, his eyes narrowing as his mind ran a series of simulations in his head, trying to figure out what the overall angle of such a decision, but there was no logical conclusion…..unless, his eyes widened, _no, he couldn't._

"Your Highness, are you suggesting, that we start bombarding the Tokyo Settlement?"

"Yes."

"But…Your Highness! There are civilians in the area, if you bombard now, it will be a slaughter. Princess Cornelia and General Darlton are both in the area. Please, give us more time."

"The civilians in that area, if they have not been able to make it to shelter by now, are probably not going to get there," Schneizel retorted calmly, as if talking down to a student "The longer we wait, the harder it will be for the 7th Fleet to execute the strike."

"Your Highness, please, Princess Cornelia…"

"General Guilford, this is not the time to hesitate, the bombardment will begin in twenty-five minutes, and I suggest you make good the time I have given you to evacuate anyone that you can."

"Yes, Your Highness, thank you," if anyone had heard the transmission, they would have assumed that Guilford was thankful for the opportunity that Schneizel had given him, but it was an entirely different story as Guilford looked like he had eaten a bitter fruit, his face a mask of barely restrained fury as the line was cut.

"Claudio, recall the rest of Glaston Knights to return to Ashford for a full resupply, they have five minutes, and get me Kururugi now."

"Sir Guilford, did Prince Schneizel just condemn Britannian citizens to death?"

"What did it sound like to you," he responded in a growl, "get me Kururugi….now."

"You wanted to see me, Sir Guilford," a muffled, slurred voice caused Guilford to look to the source, where Private Kururugi now stood, with Cecile standing beside him, looking exceptionally worried.

_My God, what happened to him,_ Guilford thought as he saw the large amounts of gauze and bandages on the right side of his face. The eyes had a dull, faraway look to them, as if he was not exactly looking at Guilford, but through him in the distance.

"Kururugi, you were the last one to see Princess Cornelia, can you tell me where she was?"

"The top of the government building," he replied, his words slurred, muted, garbled, but it was still enough for Guilford for understand, and feel terror in the fact that there was no way they could make it in time, unless he relied upon…this man.

"Private Kururugi, Prince Schneizel has ordered for the bombardment of the Tokyo Settlement," Guilford said quietly, "the mutineering forces are too well entrenched for us to retake the settlement, and anyone that is within the area is more than likely being killed by the mutineers as well. Princess Cornelia is in that area, and I want, no, I need, to rescue her."

Suzaku's eyes focused on Guilford for a moment before he nodded in mute acceptance of the unsaid orders, turning and heading out the door.

If it was any other time, Guilford would have flown into a rage at the sheer impertinence of such a move, but it wasn't the usual of times, even as he had watched the expression of Suzaku's face turn from vacancy, to congealed fury, to determination, he knew he would help them.

"He's not well, Sir Guilford" the blue haired assistant said quietly, interrupting his thoughts, "the wound isn't sealed and is still bleeding every time he irritates it. And he's a psychological case."

"What caused it?"

"Zero."

For one of the few times, Guilford was stunned, finding himself at a loss of words even as he processed that singular and most hated word.

"You mean…"

"Yes, Sir Guilford, he did….and I have a hunch that it was someone he knew…I need to go and finalize the Lancelot for the operation, we'll have it ready in a few minutes…..please…do a favor for me and try and make sure he comes back."

"…I'll try," he responded, "it's the least I can do for what he has done."

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It was insanity, a part of Suzaku reasoned, bombarding the Tokyo Settlement.

Yet, it's the only choice, that dark part of him, the tempting side of him that gleefully tortured him responded, you wanted equality, Schneizel's doing a pretty good job of being blind, he's killing both Numbers and Britannians equally in this strike.

Suzaku grit his teeth, keeping himself from verbally arguing with that self-destructive part of himself. The blossoming agony sharpening his mind as his hands tightened on the controls.

Ten minutes, that's all they had to pull this off, he was saving someone Euphie held dearly, he needed to focus.

"Suzaku, one minute to launch," Cecile's voice snapped over him lake a wave of calm, helping to shore up the storm that roiled within him.

Zero could wait the sane part of him insisted, he couldn't fail Euphie again.

The plan was quite simple, considering it was thrown together in less than three minutes. He was to launch from the Avalon into an immediate climb, defeating the depression of the autocannons dotting the government building to drop in almost like a rock onto the top, where the beacon of Princess Cornelia's Gloucester burned brightly for anyone to see.

He was then to immediately exfiltrate as fast as possible by any means.

To support him was pretty much what was left of the Britannian forces in the Tokyo Settlement area to open him a breakthrough lane.

It was a crapshoot, with what forces that were left providing indirect fire, Guilford had even gotten the HIMS Astute to be tasked for a fire mission. With the Astute, the overall hope was the mix of indirect and direct fire would buy tie for Suzaku to quickly get in and rescue the Princess.

But it was likely she wasn't-

No, she had to be, he chopped that thought off.

"Launch in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1..."

He was immediately slammed into the back of the chair as the Lancelot was shot out of the Avalon, and he immediately deployed the air glide system gaining altitude as it seemed every missile launcher on the Avalon fired its payload, the missiles arcing before their motors cut off, their destination the government building.

Almost immediately his threat boards picked up target acquisition sensors as he silently urged the Lancelot to further heights even as the display to the right counted down to its extinction. Just as the float system began warning him on the dangers of the altitude he spun it around and began a rapid descent at an almost vertical angle towards the rooftop.

As if being willed by him, the automated defenses suddenly stopped targeting him allowing him to focus on the descent even as the flames on the roof became evident.

And he was there the display noting he now had less than five minutes as he brought himself to a landing already pulling out his VARIS and immediately placing an electromagnetically propelled round through a Sutherland that landed on the roof, the resultant force causing it falling back down off the roof.

"Princess Cornelia, where are you," he called as more threats began to approach as he pulled out an MVS into the other hand, his head snapping around as he switched the display to thermal as he scanned the surroundings for a human shaped thermal silhouette.

THERE!

He fired the VARIS again the round connecting again as he moved the Lancelot down into cover to where he could spy the source.

There was Cornelia, huddled in the remnants of her Gloucester, it was obvious that she had been aware what was going on to get to cover, how long she had been there

"Princess, we need to go," he carried on replacing the MVS into its scabbard as he started laying down suppressive fire, holding the Lancelot's hand out.

"What's going on Kururugi," she asked, working herself to her feet and into the hand even as a series of founds flew over the Lancelot, a few others hammering into her Gloucester.

He opened the back of the cockpit, bringing the seat back, while he helped Cornelia, the blood dried now on her as she held her arm limply down, her eyes catching his looks.

"Where's Zero," she demanded, causing Suzaku's eyes to harden.

"We don't have time, Princess," Suzaku replied, his eyes catching as the timer now counted down under a minute, inwardly cursing, "Guilford, I got her."

A string of curses sounded in his headset.

"Private Kururugi, we've been rebuffed," he replied, "I've tried to get an extension but Schneizel refuses to even consider it. We're still 600 meters from the governmental building."

"Sir Guilford, fall back, don't waste your life, I'll get the Princess out," he replied, his eyes glancing back at Cornelia who was cramped up to the back of his chair, the small gap between the hatch and the chair being the only place to put her, even as like ants, more Knightmare frames now were getting up to the top as he pulled away from Cornelia's ruined Gloucester, MVS sword out as he swung and connected with a darting Gloucester as he pivoted around the charging jousting lance, even as more fire pummeled his position as he brought his Blaze Luminous up and deflected the rounds even as he slid the Lancelot behind a column, allowing the momentary lapse in attack to have his eyes.

"Kururugi."

"Guilford, do as he says," Cornelia ordered, Suzaku quietly thanking her for the support so he could focus on options even as he pushed the VARIS further, entering an override into the system so he could maintain a continuous fire pushing the limits of the rails, as he used the Slash Harkens to latch onto the building to leap up and over it, as he kicked down a Sutherland that seemed to be aware of his plan, stabbing the MVS down into the cockpit bloc before jumping down behind the building, "if Sir Kururugi says he'll get me out, he'll get me out."

"Yes, Your Highness," there was reluctance in his tone, but almost immediately orders were going out.

_Now how am I going to do that,_ he thought with frustration, feeling that creep of dark thoughts, as he looked through the options, it was like a rush, now there were ten Knightmare Frames on the roof pummeling the building even as they tried to flank around him, he took another gutsy Sutherland out as it tried to come around the building.

"You have any ideas," she asked quietly, her voice tired, even as she held the chair in a death grip, Suzaku trying his best to not injure her further, though his attackers were not exactly making it easy.

"I'm working on it, Your Highness," he replied, even as he moved out from the building as it finally began crumbling from the perforation it had received, coming around and charging towards the crowd, swinging and swerving as he fired his Slash Harkens, as the display ran to zero finally, terminating off the screen.

_You don't have any ideas, _ that dark voice taunted him, _all you can do is kill and destroy, it's your specialty, now you get to pay the piper._

Suzaku growled as he grabbed the bandages, and ripped them off, feeling the refreshed agony as the packing tore at his face, and reopening the sound. But the pain had the added benefit as he hoped, the pain clearing the cloudy and jumbled thoughts as he tried to figure out what they were going to do.

They had maybe thirty seconds before the attack began, the time to acquire targets, assign fire missions, and launch the missiles and begin shelling, so he needed to focus…he was here on the governmental building, a high place, surrounded by enemies who kept pushing at him.

_Too bad you don't have Lelouch helping you, he would have gotten you out_.

_SHUT U- wait….THAT'S IT!_

"Princess Cornelia, can you contact the Seventh Fleet, give them a fire mission?"

"What for, Kururugi?"

He slashed through another Sutherland, bisecting it at the waist, before jumping up and on top of another Gloucester using it as a catapult to boost away as the rest of the Knightmare recovered and began firing in pursuit of him.

"Here's what I need you to do."

As he quickly explained it, even as the shelling began walking its way up from the edge of the "occupied settlement" Cornelia looked at him in a mixture of shock and horror at the audacity, even as the respect for the idea crept in.

_It might just work, as maddening as the source of the idea was_, she thought as she keyed her own headset.

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It was insane, just certifiably insane, Guilford thought as he listened to Cornelia, his Princess, order a fire mission to the Astute to be executed as he watched the shells and missiles slam into the settlement, slowly working their way towards the government building even as he watched, thanks to a live feed from the Avalon's sensors, the battle on top of the building between Suzaku Kururugi and what were now almost a dozen Knightmare Frames, with even more working their way to the top.

Even as he heard the Astute acknowledge the command, he stilled himself from crying out for his Princess as he watched the holocaust that was the Tokyo Settlement develop at a horrifying pace as the Fleet, once it found the range began firing with devastating effect, the ships now as close to the shore as possible as their 155mm guns cycled through their ammunition as they walked the shells over the Settlement.

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"You sure this is going to work," Cornelia found herself asking, even as she watched the blood dribble down Suzaku's face, as the VARIS fired its last round, tearing the head of a Sutherland, Suzaku discarding the weapon and drawing out the other scabbard as they continued coming, Suzaku choosing to continue evading and using his energy now even more sparingly as it seemed the enemies would not stop coming.

"It worked for Zero," Suzaku found himself saying, "we can't fly out of here with the anti-air cannons, and I don't have enough energy to climb us back up to a safe altitude, so we'll take advantage of the one asset they don't have, the Lancelot's Float System."

Cornelia had to admit, it made sense, to find an Eleven, no, she needed to avoid that. Kururugi, despite his failures, was proving himself to be more Britannian than even a lot of Britannians she had known. No, even she had to admit, Kururugi, even with his foibles, had something to him.

"About Zero…what happened to him?"

"…Dead."

She braced herself as Suzaku suddenly ducked under a jousting lance, taking the opportunity to slash through the extended arms as he spun around and away from the attacker, even as he fired off his right wrist-mounted Slash Harken into another Sutherland, using his momentum to drag it into his attacker and causing them to both fall to the ground, as he leapt up, firing his other wrist-mounted Harken into the ground and using it like a harpoon to drag himself away.

"You kill him?"

Suzaku didn't reply, giving Cornelia all the answer she needed.

"So you know…"

"That I killed my best friend, yes," he replied testily.

This caused Cornelia to stop, the Kururugi boy KNEW Lelouch. No, that made sense, when they had exiled Lelouch and Nunnally to Japan, they had been housed at the Kururugi Shrine, and of course Kururugi knew them. But best friend? No, she couldn't focus on this…

"Here it comes," Suzaku warned, causing Cornelia was brought out of her thoughts as the first missile darted in slamming into the government building, the explosion rocking the building as a second, and then a third, and a fourth added their destructive payloads, hitting the front half of the building.

Even as more missiles continued to hit, their armor-piercing warheads designed to punch into fortified bunkers easily compromising the ornate fortress, and doing exactly as Suzaku had set out to have done, as the building began shaking even further. The strong skeletal structure of the governmental building, designed to carry the massive burden of the building suddenly found itself without two, then four, major structural beams, as even more missiles slammed home.

What had been a safe and stable structure now became too heavy for its own burden as the beams began snapping like toothpicks as the massive weight and compromised building could no longer hold its weight.

"Hang on," Suzaku stated, as the world began tilting, his eyes darting over the energy indicator as he activated the float system firing his harkens into a column and using it to catapult him, the resultant force causing the column to collapse as he shot up and out.

The resultant force of the building landing on the ground below could be felt and heard even through the cockpit of the Lancelot as Suzaku quickly escaped in the direction of the Ashford Academy, the precious cargo safe and mission completed, even as the bombardment continued.

But even as he surveyed the landscape in quiet contemplation as Cornelia started giving orders from behind his chair. It was a mess, the entire battlefield a mess, how many thousands were dead now because of this battle, how many civilians who had nothing to do with the battle were dead. This wasn't a battle in any way, this was hell.

His hands tightened on the controls

_Damn you Lelouch, damn you to hell._

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It had taken longer than Lelouch had told her, but what was left of the Black Knights had been able to escape, what had been almost ten thousand men and women, was down to only a handful now. Many had gone to ground as soon as the retreat from Tokyo had been completed. But what was left of the "identifiable" leadership was now hunkered down in a submarine furnished by Kyoto.

Ever since the retreat she had taken over command, the shock from the loss of Zero enough to prevent any fights for control, though Tohdoh's support was enough to keep any possible problem at bay.

Until now, as she could hear the arguments through the hatch between what appeared to be the Holy Swords, Tamaki, and even Sumeragi concerning the future direction of the Black Knights.

Now she was beginning to understand why Lelouch kept his distance even as the commander. Everyone was like a shark in a way, opportunistically waiting to take advantage of the situation to propel themselves. It was a small miracle Lelouch had kept his sanity.

And to think I had been one of those people not too long ago, she thought darkly as she waited for them to confront her.

"Kouzuki," Tohdoh spoke up, seemingly elected to be the spokesman for the little clique, though Sumeragi was beside him, "we need to talk about what happened back there?"

"What about it," she asked.

"How did you know about whatever it is you commanded?"

"I told you that Zero gave us one last miracle."

"Kallen," Sumeragi involved herself, "Is Zero…?"

Kallen thought for a moment on how to respond to that, should she admit that Zero was alive or not? Lelouch had told her to not tell anyone until his return, but….

"He's dead," she replied, focusing on the display, this was an entirely new prospect to her, lying to her own friends and allies, there was both an exhilarating feeling to have a knowledge they didn't, but it was balanced out by the guilt at lying.

This caused a pause as even Tamaki squawked in the background, obviously listening in, and driving a nail into her head, she had realized Tamaki was annoying a long time ago. But now, that she was doing what she was doing, he had entered the realm of liability and resident idiot. Again, how did Lelouch deal with him as he has, that was something she was going to have to ask.

"So what are we doing now, Kallen," Tohdoh asked, again, deferential, but there was something there that hinted that his training was grating at him to retake charge.

"We're heading to Kamine Island," she responded, "with Zero and his….mistress," boy that hurt to even say, knowing now exactly what was going on between Lelouch and C.C. and the fact that despite the adversarial relationship between herself and the green-haired witch, she couldn't help but respect her.

Now she was gone.

"With Zero and his mistress gone," she continued, "we need to salvage the Gawain, it is relatively intact despite the damage to the air glide system. I don't know what we can do with the Hadron Cannons, but Rakshata might have an idea."

Tohdoh could not help himself from agreeing at the observation, wondering exactly where Kallen had suddenly found the spine for commanding. She had never struck him as anything more than a capable Knightmare pilot, but now, he wasn't so sure. Of course, some great strategists were born from adversity when they had been previously shown no promise at all.

Still, the confidence she was exuding, there was something off that he couldn't place his finger on. Could it be possible she knew something that they didn't and was leading them on? For all the time he had known Kouzuki, she had been nothing more like a dog chasing after its master, in fact, he quietly suspected that the hero worship Kallen had was a lot deeper than that.

Was it possible that Zero was alive and this was an entire deception, as much as he wanted to dismiss it, there was that possibility, considering Zero's capabilities. If so, then why? Why did Zero abandon them at Tokyo, then fake his death? What was his angle?

But what if he truly was dead? Would he allow Kallen to jump over the entire chain of command and establish herself as their commander? That was an excellent question. Even he had to admit that he was partial to this version of Kouzuki, she had always struck him as too much of a blind follower than a leader. Now, there was this steely-eyed, determined, and daresay it, vengeful Knightmare pilot.

No, precaution was the best of choices here, even as Sumeragi needled her. He would wait and see exactly what she had to offer, despite the oddity of such a move. Right now she was driven, it would not do well to take that away from her, because even he feared her in the cockpit of a Knightmare, give her enough time, and she could probably go toe-to-toe with any Knight of the Round and prevail.

He placed his hand on the shoulder of Sumeragi silencing her.

"Continue Kallen," he finally said, and for a moment, he could have sworn he saw a flash of relief that he chosen to support her, "take the Guren out and recover the Gawain, we'll talk about all of this later."

She made a clipped nod, before taking her leave.

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"_As soon as you land, secure the Gawain, but do not open any channel to communicate. When we get back to the submarine, I will reveal myself again. We need to keep the Britannians completely in the dark concerning my survival and safety."_

"_And from there?"_

"_From there, we begin to plan our counterattack_," _he said, looking down on C.C. body with an expression that Kallen could almost swear was one of sadness, a totally un-Lelouch expression,_ "_it might take us a year or two to set the preparations for our return, but when it happens, we will not suffer the failures of the Black Rebellion."_

"_And what about the Black Knights?"_

"_By the time you return, I will have something planned out," he replied honestly, noting Kallen's expression, "you told me not to lie. I will be honest and admit I would have preferred for my true identity to not be revealed for quite some time. Zero is a persona, it is meant to be faceless, the moment you attach a face to that persona, and it defeats the purpose of Zero to be a symbol of the rebellion."_

_That….actually made sense, it was no wonder why he was reluctant to be seen without his mask, because if it had happened, no one would see Zero as a symbol, but as a person. Anonymity is Zero, to remove that is to centralize Zero as a singular entity. Even for Kallen and her Britannian education, that was quite deep to fathom._

"_Better get going, remember, when you get there and get the Black Knights to retreat, make sure to call on an open channel for the Camlann Contingency, that will cause enough chaos for you to get what's left of the Black Knights out"_

"_I won't fail you Lelouch," she pledged._

Her eyes focused on the Gawain as it was lowered into the hatch of the submarine as she was slowly lowered behind it.

Just what Lelouch was planning was beyond her, even as she felt a certain amount of trepidation for the unknown, a new feeling, something she would not have honestly felt with Zero. But Lelouch, well, in a way, it was undiscovered country, she had to learn to trust this new face, despite the fact that Zero and Lelouch were one and the same.

She sighed, but then became alarmed as the hatch closed above her, as the trepidation turned to outright panic as she spotted Tohdoh and the Four Holy Swords, Sumeragi, and Tamaki were standing at the foot of the Guren.

Her head snapped to the Gawain that was now on a knee. Lelouch couldn't see any of this, the Gawain was exhausted of energy, which meant…No, settle down Kallen, Lelouch promised to have a plan.

She hit the cockpit hatch release, allowing the cool recycled air of the submarine to hit her as she slowly got herself out of the cockpit and lowered herself down to the ground, even as the helmsman declared they were submerging, the KF carrier stored away.

She caught the hostile glance cast by Nagisa Chiba almost immediately, Kallen quietly keeping herself as neutral as possible as she her feet landed on the steel deck. The fact that Nagisa Chiba, Tohdoh's attack dog, was giving her a hostile glance, was probably not a harbinger of good things.

_Lelouch, I hope you have another one of those miracles up your sleeve_

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Tohdoh watched as Kallen exited the Guren, and almost immediately as she approached him, he could easily discern she was nervous by the way her eyes flitted over the group.

This was completely different from the confident Kallen from before, so what was causing the change.

Because you are here with a group of people who, outside of Kaname Ohgi, were the movers and shakers of the rebellion. To have them suddenly gathered before you would probably cause you some hesitation after you had usurped command, you just never know when they will take it back.

On that front, Tohdoh found himself almost as a kindred spirit to Kallen, the burden of command, maybe he should….

"WHO THE HELL IS THAT," Tamaki explained, snapping Tohdoh out of that line of thought, as he followed Tamaki's hand to the Gawain, as a figure stepped itself out of the emergency hatch of the Gawain, the figure slowly lowering himself down to the ground, even as he held a hand to his face, preventing Tohdoh from identifying him.

Almost immediately everyone went on guard, as Kallen, to his surprise, darted over to the newcomer's side, interposing herself between them.

Nagisa interposed herself in front of him, even as the other Holy Swords guarded themselves, Sumaragi's face a mixture of surprise and curiosity as to who could get Kallen to defend them. Though there were only a handful of options.

_Could it be, _Tohdoh thought.

"Zero," the singular word escaped his traitorous mouth in askance as the unknown came to a stop.

"You seem surprised Tohdoh," the unknown man observed in a voice that was now without the trappings of a voice modulator, a voice that commanded obedience, yet was intoxicating in its surety, a voice much like Zero's, "faking one's death is a tactic to lull the enemy into complacency."

He then took his hand away, revealing violet eyes and a familiar face that chilled even him to the soul.

_By all that is unholy_.

"After all," Lelouch vi Britannia said with an all-knowing smile, "being dead is a specialty of mine."

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A/N: Welp, this is the beginning of that uphill battle as the workload starts increasing. For me, this chapter was planned to be only 14-16 pages, but ended up being 22. Too many loose ends left that even I still feel that if I keep going over it, will start pushing the 30 page mark.

Why it is taking me a bit longer to churn out a chapter is partially the fact that this was a larger chapter, but also, because I am in the midst of balancing out the fact that the mid-term for my college term just passed, so now comes the fun part of writing final papers for both my classes.

Another issue is the fact that to be honest, I'm not a classic writer. I'm a seat-of-the-pants type writer in that I won't "plan" my chapters as much as let my mind take me where I want. In fact, the entire Suzaku scene was intended to be a lot more introspective, but because of a few new ideas, I have decided to delay that at least another chapter.

And before you start asking what Kallen's Geass is, all in due time. The overall plan is to show it this next chapter, the only question is what else I want to work in with it.

What goes with that will be up to how much I can feel. But to warn you, there will be some distinct changes overall in certain sectors, there will be some correlation with R2 in some features, but in others it will be new territory as I try and ascertain what is a "good idea" and a "bad idea".

Also, secondary note, if any of you have noticed, I have done some polishing in the previous chapters. It's nothing dramatic, I refuse to do anything major, but it is more some wording and reading issues. I can securely blame this on the fact that when I write, I usually write while enjoying a wine, so any muff-ups will be polished off as we go. Apologies.

So until the next chapter, hope you guys and girls stay safe and have fun. I appreciate the follows, favorites, and reviews, thank you.


	4. Euterpe

Aria Trois

Euterpe

The private antechamber was always a room that creeped even himself out, Schneizel thought with disgust, the dull lighting and shadows meant to create discomfort for those being received, while focusing the majority of light upon the throne and the man sitting upon it, highlighting his egomania.

Even though he was loathe to admit it, there was a certain amount of brilliance in the theatrics and psychological warfare that even he could respect. That still wouldn't stop him from burning this room to ashes once he became Emperor.

But that was the future, he most focus on the present, as he placed his hand open his heart and bowed before the man he called Emperor.

"Hail, Your Majesty."

"What did you wish to speak with me about, Schneizel," no acknowledgment, recognition of his position as Prime Minister, merely the response of a bored Emperor to his son.

"I wished to discuss the situation in Area 11, Your Majesty."

"What of it?"

Schneizel was thankful he kept his head bowed, if he hadn't his father would have seen his jaw set as he bit off a retort.

"Preliminary estimates put the death toll of Britannian citizens at around 53,000 with the possibility of increasing, I ha-"

"You sought audience with me over such trivialities, who cares of the bugs that are smashed when you stomp on the snake. As long as the snake is killed, no one will weep over the bugs."

_Those bugs are your loyal subjects Father. I wonder what they would think if they heard you refer to them as such_, he thought acidly.

"That may be, Father," he replied breaking etiquette, "However, as Prime Minister, it is my responsibility to handle the blowback from the situation, which is why I wish to discuss a way to both handle the fallout and to undermine any further resistance efforts in Area 11."

A long pregnant silence ensued as Schneizel brought his head up to lock eyes with his father, the man peering down his nose from his throne towards him, as if pinning him in place and examining him like a bug. He returned the look unflinching, knowing that the only thing his father understood was power and strength, to flinch would to admit weakness.

"Continue," he finally rumbled.

"The overall plan revolves around Private Kururugi, Father," a snort of derision an easy indicator of what his father thought of the subject, "the after-action reports show that not only did Kururugi, an Eleven, kill Zero, but Sir Kururugi," as Charles face darkened at that part, even Schneizel found that distasteful, wondering what in seven hells Cornelia was thinking, knighting an Eleven, "also returned, despite injuries and demands that he rest to single-handedly rescue Princess Cornelia."

"And what do you suggest?"

"That we give Sir Kururugi his due rewards for his actions."

"Tread carefully Schneizel," the Emperor warned, "to question official Britannian policy is to question me itself."

"I would not do such a thing, Your Majesty, what I suggest is that we take advantage of what is before us. Let us prop Kururugi up as the model Honorary Britannian, no, Britannian citizen," a flash from the Emperor's eyes immediately urged caution in his next words.

"What I suggest is that we turn Kururugi into a focal point, a point of pride for Britannian ingenuity in letting a Number prove his worth and earning points with the locals, if one Number can rise so high, why can't others. But the added benefit is with the right framing, we can distract our citizens by pushing a story that focuses on the romanticism of Kururugi's actions."

If there was any response Schneizel expected, loud booming laughter did not even appear on his radar, but yet here Emperor Charles zi Britannia was, laughing as if he found that statement the funniest thing in the world.

"The Knight, The Dragon, and the Princess, is that it Schneizel? You want to make a Number into the Knight in shining armor that slayed the Dragon and rescued the Princess."

"In a bit more words, yes," Schneizel admitted carefully, something wasn't right.

"I don't believe Cornelia would ever qualify as a damsel in distress Schneizel. However, I am intrigued as to this play you want to create. As such, I think I shall give you the perfect damsel in distress for this narrative."

"And who would that be, Your Majesty," Schneizel asked, his carefully controlled features barely masking his confusion.

Just who could fit the role I have envisioned?

"You may bring her in, Bismarck."

The door opened behind Schneizel, causing him to turn around to the newcomers.

To Schneizel, there was no strategy, no political battle, and no imagination that could have predicted what was before him, like a ghost of the past.

For what Bismarck von Waldstein brought in was a familiar face that he had not seen in the last 7 years and sworn off as dead.

"Nunnally," he gasped.

"Brother Schneizel."

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Charles watched as Schneizel left the throne room, pushing Nunnally as he talked to her, while his mask was one that he almost always wore as the "Emperor", underneath, he could not help but laugh at Schneizel and his reactions.

_Yes, even you can be surprised at times, Schneizel. Don't you forget that no matter how hard you try to scheme, I can and will still surprise you._

Of all the children that he had, Schneizel was always the one he worried about in a limited capacity. The boy was too much like his uncle, duplicitous and two-faced. Keeping him contained without it becoming obvious was becoming more and more troublesome. Maybe a war with the E.U. could keep him suitably distracted.

"Really Charles, you can be a bastard at times. Using poor Nunnally to get under Schneizel's skin, if I didn't know you any better, I would have assumed you had personally sent V.V. to retrieve her just for the sight of him at a loss."

"Believe me, Marianne" Charles responded looking in the direction of the voice, "if I had planned that, it would have been done with a bit more flourish. To see Schneizel knocked down a few pegs would be a rather nice change than to see him scheming like the little Emperor he thinks he is."

A small lithe form slowly revealed itself from behind a pillar, dressed in the uniform of a Knight of the Round, the pink haired teenager was the newest and youngest addition to the Knights of the Round, Anya Alstreim. At least, that would be the truth, if the young woman didn't have the red rings denoting the control of Geass, in this case, the young Anya Alstreim was the vessel for one Marianne vi Britannian, former Empress, Knightmare ace, and mother to Lelouch and Nunnally, supposedly dead.

"I don't see why you keep him around, his schemes are becoming more and more complex the longer you let him have the reins of power. Sooner or later, he will figure out a way to depose you."

"Or so he thinks, Schneizel is overconfident in his abilities to evade my eyes. I know exactly what he is doing at almost every moment. There is nothing he can do that I will not know about, Marianne."

It was still unnerving, even for him, to watch the young pink-haired girl not even half the age of the Empress bite the inside of her lip in silent contemplation in exactly the way Marianne would have done.

"And what about V.V.," she asked, "can you contain him?"

And now they were to the most vexing event of the recent developments, his errant brother, Charles thought with a frown. V.V. was becoming increasingly erratic in his behavior. He had specifically ordered his brother to not involve himself in Area 11, and especially Lelouch and Nunnally, but he had been ignored, in fact, Charles had a suspicion that V.V. was the one manipulating the incidents in Area 11 behind the scenes. What was the purpose he was not sure, but the fact that his brother was once again hiding something from him vexed him.

"He can be contained until he is no longer necessary. Do not worry, he will get his just desserts when the time is right."

"Good."

"Is that all you wanted to talk about? You seem more bothered than for something as simple as my brother's idiocy and Schneizel's scheming."

She hesitated before looking straight into his eyes, a bit of fear lacing her tone as she spoke, "I can't talk to C.C."

Charles brow furrowed, he knew of the relationship between C.C. and Marianne and the…communication via C's world that they had, it was quite like an open phone line, all that had to take place was a few moments to converse.

"Could it be she's ignoring you?"

Marianne shook her head, "I even tried annoying her like I usually do, but there's no response. Charles...I don't know why I think this…but I think she might be dead."

"Impossible, for that to happen her contract would have be fulfilled," Charles boomed, "Lelouch, was not close to the full power of Geass to achieve that, and now he's dead."

"Then why hasn't V.V. come in here trumpeting his death? You know he had a special type of disdain for Lelouch."

He frowned, she had a point. That was something he had noticed since he had received word of Zero's rise, it was far too easy to discern the identity of Zero as that of his exiled son, Lelouch. His brother had kept it quiet, but he knew that V.V. absolutely loathed the investment of time and resources Charles had quietly invested into the young Lelouch before his exile. V.V. had voiced disapproval in his willingness to groom the boy, he had a sinking feeling that was why V.V. went after Marianne, though, he would never admit it to her, that would be…unfortunate for the plan.

Was it possible that something had happened that allowed him to obtain the Code? As much as Charles knew about the world of C and Geass, there were things that still escaped him. With the escape of C.C. he no longer had as much access to the world and knowledge of Geass as he had wished and it seemed that lately even the Gods were restless.

No, Marianne was being paranoid. It was more than likely possible that C.C. had discovered a way to hide from her for the time being. It was no surprise that C.C. had a vested interest in Lelouch, he had seen her cast him glances back in the day like a new plaything for her little wish deathwish. Now that Lelouch was dead she was probably hiding and plotting again.

But it still didn't settle this foreboding feeling he had.

"What do you think of Schneizel's plan," deciding to change the subject.

Anya/Marianna shrugged, "you know I was never one for politics and tactics. Give me a target and I will render unto it death. That's why you took an interest in me, and that is why I was so effective in making the streets of Pendragon run in blood."

"Humor me."

She hopped up the stairs before sitting down, pulling her knees up to her chest in a childlike mannerism that was completely opposite to who she was, her back to him.

"It has some merit, if you like playing German Roulette. Schneizel is an excellent spinmaster, but this might be too much for him to work up. The system you built was always dependent upon Darwinism and the superiority of Britannians. To let a Number, albeit a very skilled Number, rise to the level Schneizel is suggesting is very dangerous, because it will cause those reformers in the nobility to demand to revisit the Numbers system."

"And maybe that is what I want."

Her head snapped to him, a look of surprise framing her face, causing Charles to chuckle.

"In a way, Schneizel has given me a way to fulfill my original intention to elevate Genbu Kururugi's son. In fact, I think it would be appropriate to elevate him even further, with his skill he can be an incredible asset if tamed of his naïveté. I think an elevation to the Knights of Round would be a promotion respectable for his achievements and cause enough headaches for Schneizel to keep him busy for some time."

"And if he acts out of line, I can kill him," she asked hopefully.

That surprised Charles as he paused in thought. Maybe Lelouch's death hit Marianne a bit harder than he expected, he wasn't sure if that was a liability yet, but he would need to keep an eye on her. To have Marianne suddenly interested in something more than just being a quiet observer was disquieting.

"There are methods to ensure his loyalty, but, if he interferes with the Ragnarok Connection, then I will allow you to dispose of him like the trash he is."

"That is all I would ask to honor Lelouch," Marianne/Anya responded, getting up to her feet, "I will now take my leave, Husband, I believe Anya has a meeting with Camelot concerning the design of the Mordred."

"You don't approve of it," he asked, noting the disdain in her voice.

"It's even more ungainly than my Ganymede, Charles," she sniffed, "It has all the agility of a flying brick. Give me something like the Lancelot or Gawain, but not this…monstrosity."

"I'll consider it in the future, but for now, just continue to play the part."

"As you wish Charles," she replied, but not before placing a light peck on his lips, giving him a winning smile at his stern look, knowing that she got under his skin when she did a display like that in this body, wouldn't do well for someone to walk in and watch a 15 year old kissing the Emperor, oh the scandal, "I'll take my leave."

Charles watched as the little girl in who's body resided probably his most prized of wives took her leave as he returned back into his own thoughts.

V.V. was beginning to overstep his bounds and lie to him again, as much as he wished to liquidate the boy, he still had some usage in discovering the locations of the thought elevators. However, as soon as he had outlived his usefulness…he would give him the rightful punishment that he deserved.

However, that wasn't the problem at the moment. The primary issue was the loss of Lelouch as his agent provocateur to set the stage for the Ragnarok Connection, his usefulness in creating hope for a world without hope to fight against Britannia was now gone. Which meant he would have to work on cultivating a new series of situations in order to fulfill the required strife and conflict necessary to create the required objectives for the activation of the destruction of C's world.

That was, unless he could find a new player to take up the mantle of a Zero-esque character.

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_When you stare into the abyss, the abyss that stares back into you._

That was the only thing Tohdoh could think as he stared into the eyes of the apparition long thought dead, the owner's eyes dancing with merriment at the expressions of loss of the group before him.

"It has been a long time, Tohdoh Kyoshiro," Lelouch swept his arm in a flourish as he bowed, referring to the Colonel in the traditional Japanese method, "I was worried that you had forgotten the last time we had actually met."

"It is hard to forget a guest of the Kururugi's such as yourself," Tohdoh replied neutrally, his eyes narrowed in silent contemplation, _now it makes sense why Kirihara supported Zero so implicitly, "_even after eight years."

For Sumeragi, it was entirely different for her, as she flashed back to that day back in the forest, when she ran into the "Demon of the Forest" and had set her on her path to what she was today. She had never known the identity of the demon, but now seeing that same person, she was sure of it thanks to Tohdoh's assertion…still, that didn't stop her from unconsciously stepping back in fear from the man.

"Tohdoh…who is this?"

"Yeah, who is this guy Tohdoh," Tamaki added, like a retarded parrot, Lelouch thought, sighing internally.

"You always wondered why I donned the mask of Zero," Lelouch stated before Tohdoh could answer, "well now you know. Allow me to introduce myself, I am Lelouch vi Britannia."

"Vi Britannia….vi Britannia…vi Britannia, wait, HOLY SHIT," Tamaki exclaimed, his eyes bugging as he pointed a finger at him, "YOU'RE A PRINCE?!"

"Formerly," Lelouch responded with irritation lacing his voice, as his eyes returned to Tohdoh, ignoring the fact that Holy Swords were looking ready to kill him, being a Britannian was one strike, but Britannian royalty, formerly or otherwise, well, as a sworn enemy of Japan, it made sense they'd be itching to send him to his ancestors…well, they could try, he thought with amusement.

"Well Tohdoh, Kaguya, you are now faced with a decision. What do you do with me, now that you know the true identity of Zero?"

"Zero," Tohdoh asked, "why did you abandon us at Tokyo?"

"Would you believe me if I told you that Nunnally had been kidnapped?"

"Who's Nunnally?"

"Tamaki, would you kindly shut up," Kallen snapped, glaring at him, "parroting what everyone is saying isn't helping. It's only reinforcing what a dumbass everyone thinks you are."

Tamaki sniffed, "Zero doesn't think I'm a dumbass," he muttered, before closing his mouth after catching a glare from the Kaguya.

_If you only knew_, Lelouch thought, watching the exchange, but keeping his mouth shut. _If I could have Geassed you to be intelligent and useful and gotten away with it, I would have. _

"Is that why you are fighting Britannia," Tohdoh finally asked, searching Lelouch's face, "for her?"

"Tohdoh, as much as I would enjoy explaining my actions up until now, I need to know what is going on," Lelouch responded, "I have not been in the loop since after I pursued my sister's kidnapper."

"What is there to tell you, Britannian," Chiba hissed, "we've been reduced to a handful of forces because of your desertion. Our best chance to retake Japan was lost because of you."

"Nagisa," Urabe tried to soothe her, "let's hear him out."

"No," she responded angrily, "how many of our friends are dead or injured because of this man. We had the opportunity to win, and when we had it in our grasp, he chose to run away for his sister."

"Nagisa," Tohdoh warned, casting a glare and causing her to flinch as if struck. She had a point, but to let herself give into emotion and rail was going to gain anyone anything. Suitably chastised, he focused back upon Lelouch.

"Lady Kaguya, I think we should give Zero the opportunity to be briefed on the situation. Shall we reconvene in a half an hour?"

"May I request an hour," Lelouch asked.

"You can have an hour," Kaguya accepted, "I need to contact Lord Kirihara for counsel."

"Thank you."

Letting the group depart, Lelouch stood there with Kallen until they had exited the hangar bay, sighing in relief as he bowed his head.

"Don't tell me you threw it together," she asked incredulously.

"No. I threw together getting them to give us a break."

"And why would you do that," she didn't get an answer as he walked back towards the Gawain as he clambered back up onto it before going back inside.

"Wait, Lelouch," she called out, moving over to the foot the Gawain, as he reappeared, his body under a strain as he came back out carrying a body, her eyes widening as she recognized the flowing green hair of C.C.

He then placed his foot in the stirrup of the lift for the Knightmare as it slowly lowered him down as his out-of-shape body straining to carry the body as it finally came to a stop.

"Lelouch, just what are you doing…"

"I wasn't going to leave her there," he said quietly after a moment, before placing her down, catching his breath, "she deserves better than that."

Kallen noted this different side to Lelouch, gone was the ruthless, to-hell-with-care persona of her commander, instead what she was seeing was a more vulnerable, personal Lelouch. Even with this contract, she had to admit, it was going to be hard for her to see him differently. The two images of Zero and Lelouch would need to be resolved if she was going to understand him. And that would probably take a good while, getting Lelouch to open up to her was going to be incredibly difficult.

Still despite all of that, Kallen could not help but note the tone of Lelouch in regards to C.C. As far as she knew was that that girl was a close associate of Lelouch's, other than that she was an enigma. Though, now, with what had gone on, she had a more unique understanding of what she meant, what that contract was she was referring to. Still, that tone, it suggested something more. Was it true then she was his mistress?

_Just drop it Kallen, it's not worth analyzing to death, you'll only go crazy if you do._

By now Lelouch had picked up his burden as he started walking, leading them towards the infirmary, passing by the curious looks as to who Kallen was escorting, but those looks were quickly cast away with a withering look from her.

Within a short time they had entered into the infirmary as Lelouch walked past the medic in charge and merely went into the morgue area, and without a word, his face a mask of determination even as he fought to keep himself from wheezing to, placed her on one of the slabs, before sliding her in to it.

Done, he looked back to Kallen, covered in perspiration as he wiped his forehead.

"Come with me," he finally said, leading her with him…

"What are you going to do with her," she asked.

"Give her a proper burial," he responded after freezing for a moment, before continuing to walk, "someplace nice."

Sensing the finality in that statement as a closure to the subject, Kallen chose to ensconce herself in her own thoughts as they walked along before ending up in his cabin, he walked into the back of the cabin and into the room where the shower was, as Kallen chose to sit on the desk.

"So what are you planning to do with Tohdoh, you going to tell him the truth?"

"How do you think he will take to the idea of supernatural forces out there that have the ability to bend entire people's wills with a single command? About people who cannot be killed?"

Kallen stopped herself from responding automatically, taking a step back to look at that question.

Up until yesterday, she wouldn't have believed it herself, so she could see what Lelouch was getting at, Tohdoh had always struck her as a sensible man who wasn't prone to caring for superstition, to have something as dramatic as Codes and Geass thrown in his face might cause everything to blow in their face.

"We have to tell him something, if we don't," she stopped as the pungent coppery smell of blood filled the air, causing her to shoot up from where she was sitting and move into the room where Lelouch was.

"Lelouch," she called worried, before stopping at the sight of him, back to her, trying to struggle out of a white shirt that was stained dark red in blood, a grisly reminder of what had happened to him.

"Can you help me with this," Lelouch said, turning his head to acknowledge her, "the shirt's completely dried to my skin and I can't get it off."

Kallen paused for a moment, almost eager to help him, but at the same time hesitant, the fact that Lelouch was asking her for help, but the fact that it was ZERO, regardless of the fact that it was also Lelouch, who did not return her affection.

_Just focus on the professionalism, Kallen. You promised to fulfill his contract, you damned well better fulfill it, if it is as serious as he claims it to be._

She walked over to him and placed her hands on his back, ignoring the fact that the blood residue was rubbing off on her fingers as she placed her hands on the bottom of the shirt, and tugged up, hearing Lelouch hiss as the material was yanked free.

"Thank you Kallen, now if you may," he said.

"Of course," Kallen responded, ignoring that little part of her that wanted to stay.

After she stepped back out of the room, she listened to as the water started up.

"Of course we'll tell Tohdoh something, the only question is do we tell him now about Geass, or do we tell him it later when we ascertain the level of infestation within the Britannian ranks of it."

"Lelouch, why do you prefer lying to people like Tohdoh?"

0000000000000000000000000000 

"Lelouch, why do you prefer lying to people like Tohdoh?"

He stopped scrubbing as he processed the question Kallen put forward, letting the water flow over him as he watched the blood swirl down around in the drain.

He was somewhat surprised Kallen had asked such a loaded question, he could have simply answered back because it was a necessity. However, he had a feeling that would not work for her.

_I need to remember, she is no longer just Q-1, she is my Empress, my co-equal. I can no more lie or deceive her than I could Nunnally, as much as I want to._

"Tell me Kallen, have you ever wondered why I called you Q-1," he asked.

"It's crossed my mind a few times," she responded from outside the door, "it's a code for something."

"It means Queen-1. Of all the pieces that belong to my side, the Queen it's the most useful, the most vital, as it is the sword and shield for the King."

A long silence ensued, before all of a sudden, he could hear bawling laughter.

"What's so funny," he demanded, shutting off the water as the last of the blood seeped into the drain.

"So you named us all after chess pieces, I have never heard something so damned corny," she replied, still laughing.

"I'll have you know, chess is the sport of kings," Lelouch in a miffed tone as he grabbed a towel off the rack and began drying himself off, "to be a master in chess is to be a master in strategy."

The laughing started to die off, even though he could hear a snort.

"What?"

"Nothing. So, what are you going to do about Tohdoh?"

"What do you think I should do?"

"As much as I think it may be a mistake, tell him the truth, to a certain extent. If he asks about Camlann, well," she shrugged, the rustle easily discernible to his hearing, "I guess you could bullshit him with something. But, I don't think it would work, he's been around too long to take everything at face value, especially with you Lelouch. Your history is your liability here. I'm half-Japanese and my brother was a founding member for our unit and Ohgi will always go to bat for me. But you, now that they know that not only you're Britannian, but an exiled prince with an axe to grind…not exactly going to earn you any allies."

As Lelouch reached for a fresh shirt from the pile of new clothing he stopped quietly contemplating Kallen's words while being amazed at the change from Kallen Kouzuki the loyal soldier, to Kallen Kouzuki, accomplice. The fact that she was able to adequately discern what was running through his head was indicative that he had made a mistake earlier.

Slowly getting the uniform back on, he allowed the pregnant pause to fill their conversation as he finished adjusting the ascot, tying the cape in place while he glanced at the mask before him. Tucking it under his arm, he exited the shower and found the seat in front of the desk, turning the chair to face Kallen.

"You're right of course. I need to regain their trust, and the best way to do it is through actions. Though, sadly, it appears I might be quite limited in actions, so I need to figure out a way in which to mitigate the situation," he crossed his legs, as he bowed his head in thought, chin in hand.

"Hey, Lelouch," Kallen asked, seeking his attention.

"Hm," his head looked up, as he saw Kallen frown deep in concentration as she stepped forward, her hand reaching out towards his face.

"Kallen, what are you-."

"Hold still," she said, her hand now to his forehead, brushing away the hair, and just before he could ask her anything, she made a sharp intake of breath as she stepped away.

"What is it," Lelouch demanded, watching as Kallen backed away, her face unreadable now.

"Go look in the mirror," she replied her voice a mixture of anger and humiliation, as she looked away, "I need to go freshen up. I'll meet you in the conference room."

Before he could even voice his disapproval or demand an explanation, she darted out of his room, the only word out of his mouth her name, the door sliding shut behind her.

Lelouch looked at the door for what seemed like an eternity, trying to divine exactly what would cause Kallen so much distress, but with no answer, he found himself getting to his feet and walking back into the shower where there was a large mirror.

Standing in front of the mirror, he looked himself up and down, before reaching up to his hair and moving to part it in the same way that Kallen did.

It was then he saw it, like an ugly crater in his flawless skin, it stared right at as if mocking him in silent reminder as his mind recognized exactly what that was. It was the exact spot from where the bullet had entered his brain when Suzaku had dispatched him.

With frantic and trembling hands, he quickly began taking back off his Zero costume as his mind sought to try and understand exactly what was going on.

And before he knew it he was now shirtless, looking in the mirror, and sure enough, placed right where his heart was, were a pair of tightly grouped craters the same as the one in his head.

He could only chuckle, it was only too perfect, as his mind began piecing together what was going on. Like C.C. when she died, he was marked much like hers, but while he never had heard her story about it, he knew exactly what his was, as the chuckle became a full-throated cackle.

_It's only too perfect, here I am as an immortal, and I will be forever reminded that my best friend killed me. This must be a damned comedy, and there's no audience but me and Kallen who know the joke._

He looked at his visage, cracked in wide open laughter, as his eyes trembled, as he reached out with a gloved hand, his face congealing into fury as he slammed his fist into the glass, once, twice, three times before it cracked, his laughter abating as he looked in the mirror his hand unclenching as he ran his fingers over the cracks looking at how it created multiple images of himself.

_That's right_, he thought as his hand fell back down to his side, his mouth quirking up into a smile, as if the very image before him was a joke, _I created the stage for this event. All of my sins, my lies, they have all led into this. Zero. I am now my own monument of sins. _

His fist clenched up as he whirled around and headed back to the desk, flopping himself into the chair again as the computer on it let out a beep alerting him that his requested information had arrived.

_My lies and insecurities laid the groundwork for this event. Thank you Suzaku, thank you for giving me this one….last….lesson. Never again._

Outside of his room, Kallen wrapped her hands around her chest as she could hear the crazed laughter die down. As much as she had wanted to go back in there and comfort him, for her, it was too painful to look at him right now, because it reminded her too much of her failure to protect Zero, to believe in him. No, she couldn't do that, not yet.

She unwrapped her arms, taking a breath, attempting to calm her nerves and her features even as the turmoil roiled within her. Moderately successful, she headed for her quarters.

0000000000000000000000000000 

Recovered from his lapse into despair, Lelouch allowed the door to the conference room to open, as he brought himself inside.

Kallen hadn't come back as she had pledged, and left with the situation and already tardy waiting for her, he decided to go on ahead without her, quietly wondering exactly what was taking her.

The room was already filled, causing him to arch his eyebrow as he looked over who was in the room, and the grim looks he was getting in returned.

It seemed Ohgi had recovered enough to be carted in here, his eyes had a glassy look to them, more than likely hopped up on painkillers for the gunshot he had received. He privately wondered exactly how effective Ohgi would be here instead of in the medical bay.

The other newcomer was Rakshata, obviously she had been pulled into the little cabal being put together in regards to his "debriefing", fancy word for interrogation. The tobacco smoke seemed to hover over her as she cast him a thoughtful glance.

Sumeragi with her hands in her lap as she looked at him expectantly, but in her eyes, he could see a look that was very different from the effervescent and curious girl from before. There was something new that was weighing down on her, other than the failure of the Battle of Tokyo.

_What is she thinking_, he thought to himself, _What did Kirihara tell her?_

Tamaki, thankfully, was nowhere to be found, obviously someone had gotten a clue and removed the loudmouthed idiot. The last thing Lelouch needed to do was dumb it down for the likes of Tamaki. He was still trying to figure out exactly how Tamaki had been involved earlier, probably just nosed his way into it and no one slapped him down.

Tohdoh sat with his arms crossed as his eyes narrowed at him as he found a seat for himself. Of Tohdoh's Holy Swords, it was Ryoga Senba sitting beside Tohdoh, not Chiba, which was a plus in his books, Senba was probably the most logical of the Four Holy Swords outside of Tohdoh. That might or might not be an issue, Lelouch really hadn't had the opportunity to talk with Senba at length, but from what he could gather, Senba was loyal to Tohdoh, so getting Tohdoh onboard would be the most desirable outcome.

The absence of Diethard was an added bonus, from what he had heard, Diethard was currently passed out from his raid on the alcohol stock. Lelouch didn't trust him, he was a great information specialist, but he was a media man, the prospect of Zero being an exiled Britannian prince would be almost be too much for him to sit on.

_Which won't come in this skirmish_, Lelouch thought, as he reached up and unsealed the mask, removing it from his face and placing it down, faceplate aimed towards the group.

Ohgi looked pained and angry as he stared at him. He had known that Zero hadn't been Japanese, but to discover that he was a former Britannian prince. But there was something else, a flash of betrayal in Ohgi's eyes, something that he had never seen before from the generally cool but indecisive secondary commander. He then averted his gaze from Lelouch after the short staredown.

_There's something there other than his hatred for Britannians thanks to the massacre. He feels betrayed,_ Lelouch calmly deduced as he placed his hands down on the cool table, clasping his hands, _but it isn't the first betrayal he has had recently. Need to figure out what it is._

"Tohdoh, to answer your question where we left off," Lelouch began, "Yes. I am fighting for Nunnally. I am fighting against the injustice of the Britannian believe that the strong rule the weak, and the weak are merely to be used as toys for the powerful. I want to see that system destroyed."

"And what is Japan to you," Ohgi asked caustically, surprising Lelouch at the vehemence in his tone.

"Originally, I had planned for it to be a stepping stone in my challenge to Britannia," Lelouch shrugged, "my timetable was moved up several years because of the events of the Shinjuku Ghetto involving myself."

If Ohgi wasn't wounded Lelouch would have no doubt that he would be rising up out of the chair to attack him, instead Ohgi's face merely darkened as he rose, because he automatically understood what was unsaid, if he hadn't gotten involved, they would have been wiped out. Instead he chose to lash out with words.

"So we're nothing more than pawns for your little game with the Britannian Emperor," he demanded.

Lelouch could not help but smile at the irony of the statement, "Why, you hit the nail on the head, P-1," this time Ohgi shot up, his face a mask of fury, ignoring the risk of reopening his wounds, but before he could do anything more, Lelouch continued, "you originally were pawns in my fight with Britannia. However, like in chess, pawns have the capability to evolve into something much stronger."

"And that is," Tohdoh quickly asked.

"Allies. We're allies in this fight against Britannia, you wish to retake Japan and I wish to destroy Britannia. In a way, our alliance of convenience has become a symbiotic relationship, I can no more threaten Britannia without you than you could threaten Britannia without me."

"Zero," Kaguya asked, "I think all of us can understand why you left us. However, I think we are all more concerned with two things. First, what was the Camlann Contingency?"

Before he could answer, the door to the conference room opened and Kallen walked in, causing everyone to focus upon her.

Ignoring the looks, she walked over to where Lelouch leaning in to his ear.

"Sorry Lelouch, something came up," she whispered, "we need to talk after this."

He nodded in response as Kallen then took a step back, setting herself behind him and to his right. This was not missed by anyone in the room as Lelouch refolded his hands.

"Camlann was a backup plan I had been working in conjunction with our operations. Using what connections I had, I was working out deals with vulnerable Britannian officers and soldiers to act as a reserve force for our retaking of Japan. I intended to use them as a contingency only because if we had used them in the fight against Cornelia, it would have undermined my sources within the Britannian hierarchy in the long run. The only executed part of the Camlann plan that I had originally deemed to use was to collapse the settlement on Cornelia."

"And what deals were you going to give them," Ohgi asked angrily, sitting back down.

"What else, wealth, power, prestige…and a bullet in the head, that last part unsaid" he replied smugly, "Make no mistake, traitors are nothing more than disposable assets to use. Why should we trust someone who betrayed their home country for material wants? Traitors like that are nothing more than mercenaries, no conscience or loyalty, they will always backstab you for the better offer."

He let that settle in, his features schooled into an intense mask. This entire event was a giant show of theater, his audience was the Black Knights before him, and he was the performer. If he did not suitably impress them, then it was more than likely they would depose him and descend into infighting, a possibility, of course, but it was within projections. If it happened that way, then he had a plan for that, though, his eyes looked at Kaguya who still had a pensive look on her face.

_It is possible she is acting on Kirihara's orders, if that is the case then this will probably be easier. He knows that I will not forsake my sister for a simple rebellion…this might actually work. But Tohdoh needs to be tamed._

"And what is your plan for Japan now, Zero. If we were to continue following you?"

"For now, we can't do anything," he replied with hesitation, "to put it simply the fight for Japan has now escalated beyond our capabilities."

"Escalated beyond our capabilities?! We had Britannia on the run before you decided to run away. If you had stayed and-"

"And Schneizel would have had us dining on ashes well before we enjoyed the fruits of victory, Ohgi," Lelouch snapped, his fingers tapping the helmet now, feigning irritation, "maybe you have not read the newswire, but Schneizel razed the majority of the Tokyo Settlement, simply because he could not take it back conventionally. I know him Ohgi, he cares nothing for human life as long as his objectives are achieved. He just threw away fifty thousand Britannians to wipe out a minor insurrection and to send us a message."

"And that is," Tohdoh asked.

"To put it simply, the Sakuradite must flow. To Schneizel, if he has to kill a couple million to make sure the Sakuradite keeps flowing to Britannia, then he will kill them without a single emotion. To him, any means justify the ends, he just prefers the most efficient."

"But that doesn't mean we should-"

"Are you listening to him Ohgi," Kallen demanded, slamming her palms down on the table with a resounding slap, "Lelouch just said millions. Imagine if Schneizel decides that it is no longer worthwhile to keep the Japanese around. It won't take them long to wipe us all out considering they have almost all of us situated in ghettos. How long do you think we'd have in warning before they descend upon each and every ghetto and just exterminate us? They can simply ship in other Numbers to do the work that we are already doing."

"She's right," Lelouch continued, "haven't you ever wondered why right after the conclusion of hostilities they moved most of the Japanese to the ghettos?"

"Final Solution," Rakshata finally spoke up, her voice choked in horror, "I thought it was all rumor and intellectual arguments. Oh my God, are you saying it exists?"

"What's the Final Solution," Ohgi demanded, Kaguya looking between Lelouch and Rakshata.

"Go on," Lelouch urged.

The normally confident Rakshata looked stricken as she fumbled with her tobacco pipe, taking a nervous drag from it.

"Final Solution was a word we used to describe a hypothetical program in which Britannia could wipe out the indigenous population of a conquered area," she said finally, "it was executed by placing the majority of the population in an area with a wrecked infrastructure, usually the ruins of their major population centers. From there Britannia could create a three option setup in which they would force the indigenous population to become dependent on the Britannians for survival, they could institute a slow die-off until the indigenous population is at a suitable level, or they could simply seal the ghetto and exterminate all of its inhabitants at a predetermined time," she looked at him, "it really exists," she asked.

"It does and it's been executed once in the history of its existence. It wasn't a resistant strain of smallpox that wiped out the inhabitants in Area 7," he let a pin drop before he continued, Rakshata knowing exactly what he was referring to as she paled, "to be more exact, it wasn't a resistant strain, but a weaponized strain test. The resultant loss of a third of the Hawaiians allowed my grandfather, the previous Emperor, to seal the Zone and massacre the entire population, burning the bodies, and blaming the plague. Since burning the bodies is standard procedure for a plague outbreak, the entire world took it as is."

"And how do you know this," Tohdoh asked, his voice maddeningly level.

"My mother, Empress Marianne, mentioned it to me once, called it a pathetic ego trip by a decrepit old man. No one, not even a Number, should die by something as cowardly as a plague. That's why the new version of the Final Solution is designed around Knightmare Frames. It is also the same plan Clovis used when he attacked Shinjuku."

The implications were not lost. Shinjuku had been too cut and dry to be just thrown together in a moment. There had to be a plan that provided an executable strategy. Lelouch had provided them the link.

"So then, what do you suggest we do?"

"We wait. We lull Britannia into a sense of complacency and we prepare. When the time is right, we strike."

"But you stated that what we now face exceeded our capability," Kaguya pointed out, "what are you suggesting to defeat this imbalance."

_Here goes_, Lelouch thought.

"I suggest we seek out allies who might be partial to our cause."

0000000000000000000000000000 

After that announcement, Kaguya had asked for Lelouch and Kallen to leave, obviously sensing that Kallen was now firmly in his camp. Which was fine, he figured that an automatic decision was not going to be in coming. With the Six Houses of Kyoto still intact, it was obvious that Kaguya was acting as a middleman in reporting. Of the Six Houses, he knew Kirihara would be more than likely still in his camp and that was strategically advantageous for the next step.

The problem was Kaguya was not her usual expressive self so he hadn't gotten a reading off her and Tohdoh had rarely emoted in any way other than asking questions. Again, Tohdoh was expected, Kaguya not so much. That was something he would need to take care of.

"Zero," Kallen spoke, causing him to stop, glancing back over his shoulder. His mask was back on now since they were outside of the conference room. Having his identity known outside of what he was beginning to call the "inner circle" would be disadvantageous. The likelihood of a secret being blown is proportional to the square of the number who're in on it.

"What is it Kallen," he asked.

"We needed to talk," she reminded him, her face stern, "my cabin, now."

_What could be bothering her_, he thought as he nodded in assent, allowing her to lead him to her cabin, the door opening as she led him into the dark room.

"Now, what is it, Kallen," he asked, suddenly stopping as door closed and Kallen turned on the lights.

Standing there in a daze, his eyes ringed in a reddish tint, was Tamaki.

He took off his helmet to look at it more closely, before looking at Kallen, who looked uncomfortable.

"When, why, and how," Lelouch said looking back at her, his voice commanding, watching Kallen avert her gaze.

_She's not used to this, slow down, Lelouch_, he thought, _you freaked out the first time you used Geass as well. It's unnatural and for someone like Kallen, who has always looked at the oppression of Britannia as horrible, this is probably making her a mess inside._

"Kallen. Listen to me, this is the power I told you about, the power of Geass" he said, "before I became like this, I had what you have now. I need to know everything so I can help you figure this out."

"You had this power," Kallen asked, angrily, "to do," she motioned towards Tamaki, who seemed to be completely focused upon her, as if she were his master, "this?"

"Not exactly like this," Lelouch admitted, his mind desperate for the information, "at least, I don't think so. Kallen, I need to know what your Geass is, so please, tell me."

0000000000000000000000000000 

_Earlier_

_**It's my fault**__, Kallen lamented to herself as she rounded the corner towards, __**If I didn't hesitate I could have saved Lelouch. He wouldn't have that….**_

"_There you are Kallen," Tamaki called out, rounding the corner behind her after coming out of a jog, coming within only a moment of slamming into the bulkhead wall a huge grin on his face, "I was looking for you."_

"_What is it Tamaki," she growled._

"_Hey hey," he held up his hands, "is that the way to treat your buddy. I was just concerned. I saw you leaving Zero's room looking all depressed, I was wondering what went on."_

"_That's none of your business."_

"_But I'm Zero's bestest buddy, if he's unhappy, I should know," he protested._

"_No, you don't," she replied, reaching her door and opening it, starting to step in._

"_Was it good," Tamaki blurted out, causing Kallen to stop, and spin around angrily._

"_What?!"_

"_Well," he paused, starting to laugh nervously, realizing that he had enraged the redhead, the prospects for his health were beginning to diminish._

"_Was WHAT good," she demanded jamming a finger into his chest as she backed him into the wall, her cerulean eyes flashing an unrivaled fury that caused Tamaki to wish to flee._

"_Well, you know, you kept insisting on going back to Ashford, and your expression just a bit ago" Tamaki stated, looking for an escape, "I figured you knew that Zero was Lelouch. By the way you were always by his side, I figured that you guys were you know…an item and stuff. So I was asking if you know."_

_If Kallen wasn't so infuriated, she would have blushed at the statement, but instead, her hand raised up as she brought it down, slapping him with a resounding snap, even as she could feel the back of her eye begin to twitch._

"_Tamaki, that is none of your business, why don't you sit and spin," she snarled, beginning to turn around._

"_Why was your eye glow-…That actually sounds like a good idea," he responded his voice off-tone and giddy, as she spun back around, to find Tamaki going into a sitting position, legs being drawn up as he began spinning on his ass._

"_Tamaki, what are you doing," she asked, anger abating as confusion starting to insert itself into her mind as she tried to figure out what would cause Tamaki to do something as stupid as sitting and spinning in the middle of a hallway on a warship._

"_Exactly as you asked me to do," Tamaki replied smiling, continuing to sit and spin._

"_Stop it," she demanded, "you're making a scene."_

_Sure enough, he stopped, looking up at her expectantly, before, as if a switch had been flipped, he looked around confused._

"_What am I doing on the ground," his head darted back and forth, as if waking from a nightmare "why does my ass hurt? What did you do Kallen?"_

_**What the hell is going on, **__Kallen thought confused, __**why did Tamaki just…wait? I told him to sit and spin and he did it?**_** H**_**e said my eye was glowing.**_

_She rifled in her suit's pocket, pulling out her mobile communicator, flipping it open. She then quickly turned on the camera to look at her face._

_At first there was nothing there, but then suddenly, as if her mind was deciding to play games with her, she could feel her eye twitch as suddenly, her eye lit up in a familiar image that she had seen before._

_Nothing could keep Kallen from expressing horror as she recognized what she was looking at._

_**That's….That's what Lelouch had in his eye when Suzaku killed him. Is this the Geass he was referring to when he talked to me? **_

_She looked back to Tamaki, urging that eye to obey her._

"_Go into my room and stay there until I tell you otherwise," she ordered._

"_What are you talking about Kall-," suddenly his face broke into a smile, "Okay."_

_He then walked into her room and set himself in a corner as Kallen followed in behind him._

0000000000000000000000000000 

"Then I quickly took a shower, locked the door, and headed to the debriefing," Kallen finished, glancing guiltily towards Tamaki, before looking at Lelouch.

_It's a command class then_, Lelouch thought, _looks like a direct eye-contact variant. Too much like my own then. But it's not an absolute obedience type, there's a delay between activation and effect, though what causes the delay needs to be figured out. What are its limits?_

"Tie him up," Lelouch commanded.

"Why?"

"Because he will make an excellent test subject for your power."

"Lelouch, I didn't sign up for doing this. This is wrong," she responded, looking at Tamaki, "we're fighting against a nation that enslaves people, and this….thing, it does the same thing."

"And?"

He sighed as he placed his mask down, looking over Kallen who looked ready to spit bullets.

_This is going to be a lot harder than I thought._

"Kallen," he finally started, "we are facing a nation that controls over one-third of the world. I got the Black Knights to where it was with my skills, as well as Geass. Do I find it abhorrent that I have to use this power? At times, yes, I have questioned it. But to possess a sword and not draw it when in a fight to the death is the height of stupidity. Think of Geass as an asset. And your Geass is special."

"So enslaving people to your will is any better?"

"Aren't you following my will?"

"But that is my choice."

"So I should have given our enemies a choice? Kallen, listen to yourself."

"Did you Geass me," she demanded.

"…Yes."

Kallen looked ready to explode, her hands curling into fists.

"When?"

"After Shinjuku. When you showed up at Ashford, I remembered you from the transport containing that capsule. I Geassed you to confirm my suspicions."

"And nothing else?"

"Nothing else. It is a one-shot Geass; I can only order a target once before they gain immunity to it."

She looked him over for what seemed like an eternity, taking a deep calming breath as she settled.

"Okay Lelouch. But not right now. I need to think on this."

Internally Lelouch wanted to remind her of the contract she had formed with him. That she promised him that she would fulfill his wish. But all it took was one look at her to realize that it would undermine everything. She needed to make the decision without him forcing her, despite everything she had promised.

"Very well Kallen," he responded, "but you will need to use your power on Tamaki again. People will start missing him and he will ask questions on what he was doing."

Kallen looked like she had eaten something that she disagreed with, looking towards Tamaki.

"Tamaki, you will return to normal," she said, her eye flashing as the Geass kicked in, "the reason you were in my room is because you wanted to apologize to me for your comments about me sleeping with Zero," Lelouch raised an eyebrow at that, "you passed out because I was gone for so long."

It only took a few moments, but when it happened, Lelouch began to form a firm picture of exactly what her Geass entailed as Tamaki's eyes closed as he made a pleasurable sigh, as if something had just happened to cause him to get a high.

Then suddenly his eyes snapped open, looking around in confusion.

"Zero buddy, Kallen," he said, "umm, I'm sorry for earlier Kallen. I'll leave you guys now."

Before they could respond, he barreled out of Kallen's room.

"Please leave, Lelouch," Kallen said.

Taking a hint, he also left.

He knew Kallen would end up supporting him, but Kallen needed to temper her emotions and feelings. It was her greatest strength and her greatest weakness. Once she came to a conclusion, she was nigh unstoppable.

But for right now, he would prepare for Tohdoh.

0000000000000000000000000000 

"This is preposterous. Why are we even letting him defend himself. He deserted us. If this was the JLF he would have been shot."

"But this isn't the JLF, Asahina," Urabe shot back, "the boy had family kidnapped..."

"So he claims. That doesn't excuse his actions, we've all made sacrifices for Japan. He just chose to abandon his responsibility."

"If it wasn't for Zero we wouldn't have been this close Nagisa."

"But the only reason he's doing this to get back at the Emperor, Urabe. He even told Tohdoh that we were pawns. If he can abandon us once, he can most assuredly do it again. It's only natural for a Brit to throw us away when he feels like that."

"You're only saying this because he's a Britannian Prince-"

"Of course I am, the only good Britannian royal is a dead one."

For the last twenty minutes Tohdoh had listened to the constant back-and-forth between Asahina, Urabe, and Nagisa after he had informed them of what had went on. He had originally believed the discussion would have been civil, but had swiftly spun out of control and allowed him a glimpse into the thoughts of his Holy Swords and what he saw disappointed him.

He had trained them to be open to all thoughts and ideas, and it was safe to say that teaching had failed. It wasn't Urabe that disappointed him, Urabe for his part was the only one trying to rationally have a discussion. It was Nagisa and Asahina. He had always had his suspicions of Asahina being a closet racist, but Chiba was the truly disappointing one. It seemed like a switch had been flipped with their defeat and now all the successes she had been astounded by seemed moot with the revelation that Zero was s Britannian Prince.

_But I'm questioning based upon the same thing_, he thought, _I never once questioned Zero's motives even when some of his strategies didn't make sense. All because he brought us success._

_And because Itsukushima was a fluke_, he added darkly as he thought of his so-called nickname of "Tohdoh of Miracles". The only reason he won was because he knew the terrain of Itsukushima better than the overconfident Britannian commander who had blundered into terrain in which his mobility was negated. If the Britannian commander had shown a bit of smarts his forces would have been easily slaughtered. But because it was the only victory they of course labeled it to make themselves feel better.

_That is why I willingly followed Zero. Because he is the better strategist. To admit otherwise would be the height of stupidity._

"Enough," he commanded, his eyes opening as he took in his subordinates.

"Zero may be Britannian, but he has also brought us to this point. I will not tolerate a besmirching of him simply because of his origins," his eyes slid of Asahina and Chiba who both averted their gaze, "I want your honest opinions upon him, but refrain from acting in the same way as Britannians."

"Does this mean that you have decided to support Zero," Asahina asked, avoiding eye contact.

"No, that does not mean I have decided," Tohdoh responded, he glanced to Senba who had been silent the entire time, a troubled look on his face, "through this entire time, you have been silent Ryoga. What are you thinking?"

"I have been thinking about General Katase's death," Ryoga said quietly, "how odd it seemed. The General abhorred the idea of suicide, yet everyone believes he did just that when he detonated the tanker."

Tohdoh arched an eyebrow, motioning Senba to continue.

"I was just thinking. What if it wasn't suicide, what if someone caused it to explode."

Tohdoh frowned deeply as he himself thought about it.

"If someone had caused it to explode, there would only be one culprit," Asahina pointed out, "only one person could have benefitted from the death of the General and the JLF General Staff."

"Zero," Chiba breathed.

"You're making conclusions based upon coincidences," Urabe protested.

_But it's not, _Tohdoh thought, _it's too perfect. And if Lelouch has been planning revenge against Britannia for the last 7 years, isn't it likely he would hold a grudge against the man who suggested drowning her because she was "excess baggage" that was unnecessary. If he was willing to go far enough to abandon us for his sister, is he capable enough…_

_Of course he's capable enough. To him killing Katase would give him a massive boom, it would deprive the JLF of its leadership, removing any threats to his power base, and would give him the manpower to move the Black Knights from a third-tier power to a first-tier power overnight using the Kyoto Group as interference….it's brilliant. And absolutely a tactic Zero would use._

"For now, we shall wait and see," Tohdoh finally stated, "it would not do us wisely to simply discard Zero in honor of what he has done for us. But at the same time, we cannot fully trust him. When the vote is held, I will vote to allow him to remain as our commander."

_But the Kyoto Group will be the deciding factor, so it really doesn't matter how I vote, my vote will be nullified by them._

0000000000000000000000000000 

_Fifteen hours, fifteen hours since the bombardment of the Tokyo Settlement and my failures._

Cornelia could only stare out the windows at the charnel house that was the remnants of the Tokyo Settlement. Smoke from the still burning fires hung over the area like a diabolical cloud joyously promoting the utter devastation that had been wrought.

Her arm flared in agony as she spun around from it, the sling shifting, as she looked at the desk of the Ashford President that she had appropriated sheaves of paper and reports before her.

A massacre. That is the only word she could describe it as. Her brother had ordered a massacre. And he had ordered the destruction of the Settlement with her in it.

She knew Schneizel was a bastard, but she hadn't known out how far his depravity could go until now.

A dark part of her admitted that she should be applauding the bold move that Schneizel had executed. It was patently ruthless and militarily sound. And previously she would have supported it wholeheartedly.

Now?

Now, after Euphie and the truth behind Zero. She wasn't so sure.

She had wracked her mind since Zero had revealed himself as Lelouch. How had he survived, but also, why did he become Zero.

_Because if anyone had a grievance with the Empire, it would be Lelouch._

But she would never know all the details to what drove him, not anymore.

And the cause of that was her savior, an Eleven, Suzaku Kururugi.

That would need a lot more soul-searching than she would have ever bargained for in a lifetime. She had been born and raised on the superiority of Britannians and the inferiority of Numbers. Yet here was Suzaku Kururugi to shatter those perceptions.

Never again would she badmouth Kururugi, it was just impossible. Not when he done so much for people that had hated him, herself included.

She remembered how as soon as they had landed, his mission accomplished he had simply passed out, his body simply no longer able to function from the stress and blood loss. The last thing she had seen of him was him being taken away on a stretcher as medics had looked her over.

"Your Highness," Guilford's voice interrupted her thoughts, causing her to look up.

"What is it Guilford," she asked quietly, placing her hand down on the table, feeling a bout of wooziness hit her, the medics had told her she had a concussion, but she would be damned if she would rest while the Tokyo Settlement was still burning. She had a feeling that Guilford was keeping a lot of the work from her in the hope she would simply rest and recuperate. It was admirable and she had felt the need not to push him on it. In her state, even she doubted her ability to adequately lead.

"The latest casualty estimates," he said quietly, his eyes sunken from the lack of sleep, so obvious that the strain was getting to him.

"Just…give them to me," she said quietly, her eyes sliding shut.

"Twelve thousand dead, fifty-eight thousand wounded, eighty-six thousand missing," he stated, watching Cornelia, her eyes closed, who looked like hell, simply take a ragged breath, her eyes opening and sharpening in intensity. He knew she was hurting in more ways than physical. For a soldier like Cornelia, she had sworn an oath to protect Britannian citizens and to have this debacle happen through no fault of her own.

If he wanted to be honest, what he wanted to do was to wrap his arms around her and comfort her, to try and soothe her, but he was her Knight, he was not going to cross the line under any circumstances, no matter how much he wanted to.

"The rescue efforts," she asked tiredly.

"We're using the Seventh Fleet as a mobile station while we conduct rescue and evacuation. In addition, I have received notification that Prince Schneizel," she noted slight change in pitch of his tone, even as she felt a swell of fury, "has ordered the Second Fleet to sortie from Area 12 with aid and materials. But for now, we're using the other settlements."

"And the Black Knights?"

"They've disappeared," he replied, "the Temeraire recorded a possible submerged transient headed for Kamine Island, but their orders were to bombard the Settlement, so they tracked it until it was lost. If our Intel is right, that is the Black Knight command vessel."

_They'll be back, but without Zero, they'll be more manageable, _she thought as she felt her eyes close, the dull throbbing turning to a roar in her head. Another failure on her part, just another nail into her honor.

"Is there anything else, Guilford?"

She could hear the hesitation before he finally spoke.

"Sir Kururugi is awake," her eyes snapped back open, before she looked at him in question, "I just felt you might want to know."

"Thank you Guilford. Why don't you get some rest, Claudio could probably take over for you."

"Thank you Princess, but maybe you should get some as well" he gave a small bow and took the proffered dismissal.

She knew she should have taken Guilford's advice she had barely rested since her return, but before even she could fathom it, Cornelia found herself moving, as if not by a mind of her own. In a way, it was unfathomable to her previous unaffected self, but before she knew it, she was standing outside the room in which Suzaku Kururugi was being kept.

She stopped at the door as she heard voices through the door though she could not make out the words. Waiting until the voices had died down, she chose to open the door and enter.

Everything stopped as she scanned over the surroundings.

Sitting up in a bed was Suzaku the right side of his face rewrapped, eyes widening in surprise at the sight of Princess Cornelia in his room even as he struggled to attention. There was another woman with blue hair sitting in a comfortable sofa chair, well, had been sitting when she had snapped to her feet coming to attention.

_That must be Cecile Croomy, the co-creator of the Lancelot._

"Your Highness," they both stammered, surprised by her presence here.

"I apologize for interrupting you, but I need to borrow Sir Kururugi for a moment," Cornelia commanded.

"Of course, Your Highness," Cecile replied moving towards the door, taking the tone as a dismissal. Once she had reached it she cast one last worried glance towards him before shutting the door behind her.

Cornelia now took the time to look over the Eleven pilot, before coming to a decision.

"May I sit," she asked motioning towards the chair previously occupied by Cecile.

"Of course," he responded, watching her settle into the chair with a grimace.

It seemed like an eternity had passed between the two before Suzaku finally cleared his throat.

"I apologize, Princess, but is there something you need?"

"So you know who Zero is," she asked quietly after another long pause, deciding it was better to get straight to the point than to talk niceties with someone who she didn't really know.

He grimaced in response, before nodding his head.

Never in her life could she believe the difficulty in talking about this, it was something so simple, yet so fraught with complications. Her family was arguably never a simple thing considering the internal dynamics that existed. All she could remember is the last time she had seen Lelouch, the angry child who had been forced to become a man too early. How he had rebuffed any attempt she made to even talk to him or Nunnally.

"_Cornelia, we are dead to you," he had said quietly, his voice a seething mass of fury, yet at the same time calm and collected, "it would be better for you to forget about us." _

_He didn't even let her respond, as he turned around and headed for the car that would take them to Japan and to their 'death'._

"He hated Britannia, you know," Suzaku said, finding words, "hated what it had done to him and Nunnally. To be discarded by your own family simply because you had no more use. The last time I saw him seven years ago, he swore to destroy Britannia."

"And you ran into him again?"

"Here," he said, finding something therapeutic to even talk about Lelouch, as much as he hated him, "the Ashford's took him in after the fall of Japan. I didn't know until I was transferred to school here. If I had known he was Zero I could have…"

"Why didn't you tell anyone," she demanded angrily.

"Tell them what," Suzaku replied, his voice of mixture of anger and despair, "that Lelouch and Nunnally were alive? Get them reinvolved in Imperial politics. How long until you think another member of the Imperial family tried to kill them?"

Kururugi had some gall, she thought as bristled at the tone, to be arguing with her.

_But he is right_, she thought, _even if Lelouch and Nunnally were discovered alive, they would have been torn to shreds by the other families simply because they are a reminder of Empress Marianne. It is no small secret that Marianne was the Emperor's favorite and that was a leading reason why she was killed. You just have no idea who did it and Schneizel is not forthcoming on any information either._

"You're right," those words escaped her mouth to her surprise, as if she were possessed by the truth, "Lelouch and Nunnally would probably have not lasted if brought back into the family, if they were brought back in at all. I think I can understand why Lelouch never revealed himself…but that doesn't excuse why he took up the mantle of Zero…and killed Clovis and Euphie."

"I'm sorry," he responded almost automatically, his eyes closing as he tried to fight from crying, surprising Cornelia at the depth of emotion that seemed to swirl around him, "I failed you Princess….I failed her. I watched him kill her and I could do nothing about it. All I could is avenge her."

_You came in here expecting a Knightmare pilot who was on guard, respectful, and in control of their emotions, _Cornelia chastised herself, as she felt her anger start to rise, even as she observed the pitiful look on his face, but as fast as the anger had risen it quickly disappeared. This wasn't a Knight that was ashamed in his failure, no…this was something else.

"Did you love her," she found herself asking, surprised at even asking the question, it was totally inappropriate, hell, a Number loving a Britannian royal was so beyond the pale. It was an offense that could be met with death. Yet, she had always found herself wondering why Euphemia had always defended and protected Suzaku, telling her that she was missing out on who Suzaku was.

Suzaku's eye widened as he looked at her, as if trying to believe that she would ask him such a loaded question, a question that could likely lead to his death. But then Cornelia saw something else, something that both scared and entranced her.

"Yes," he said, with an eagerness of a man dying of thirst finding an oasis, "I loved her."

_My God, what is it I have gotten myself into,_ Cornelia thought, _there's only one reason he would answer such a question like that. He actually wants to die. He's so ashamed of his failures, he wishes to have someone kill himself to wash away his sins. I guess we're both well and truly fucked up…_

"Relax," she commanded trying to keep her voice level but failing to do so as she tried to assuage this different side laid bare before her, "this is just between you and me, Sir Kururugi. I had a suspicion that your loyalty to my sister was something more than just a liege-vassal relationship. Euphie…..Euphie always claimed you were a lot more than just a Number. I wish I had listened to her before…"

_I will not cry, dammit,_ she commanded herself, _especially, not in front of him…_

"It's okay," he said quietly, almost a whisper, as if reading her mind. Cornelia just faintly hearing it, but to her, it was like a gunshot, "I won't say anything."

She looked at him, tears forming in her eyes as her lips trembled, all her effort in preventing something as inappropriate as a royal crying, breaking as she let the tears trail down her face, the mask of a warrior shattering to reveal the stern but loving sister underneath.

"Euphie was special, of all the Emperor's children she was the most….gentle. She would never hurt anyone and she always tried to make everyone happy. I would have done anything for her and I kept pushing her away because of my damn duty. Look what my duty has done," she gestured out the window, anger creeping back, "I've lost everything. Euphie, Darlton, the Tokyo Settlement….Lelouch. I can't hate him Kururugi, I just can't….as much as I want to hate him with all of my heart. As much as I want to spit upon his memory. Because we created him, Sir Kururugi…"

"Please, just Suzaku, I'm not worthy of this title," he responded.

"No, if anyone is worth of that title, it's you," she bit off, shaking her head, wiping away the tears, fighting to gain back control of herself and not be as hysterical as she was being, "Euphie was right, you have a heart more noble than a lot of Britannians. Hell," she laughed bitterly, waving her hand, "even quite possibly me. How can you even stand fighting for us, we've enslaved your fellow countrymen and treated you as a subhuman? You have no reason to even be fighting for us, yet here you are…"

He averted his gaze.

"Tell me Suzaku, why do you even do it," she asked, almost pleadingly, "why do you fight against your own people for us, your slavemasters."

"Because…," he then straightened himself, staring straight into Cornelia's eyes, his brown eyes tightly controlled, yet expressive at the same time, "because this is my penance…"

Before he could continue, the door flew open, causing both of them to jump, as Lloyd Asplund walked in with a look of merriment on his face.

"Oh boy, have you got everyone in the homeland in an uproar, Suzaku," Lloyd said gleefully.

"Why, what's going on," Cornelia demanded, the mask of a warrior slamming back in place, Earl Asplund wise to ignore looking at her, allowing her time to wipe away the tracks on her face.

Lloyd merely smiled as he pulled out a small data slate, and held it out to Suzaku.

"You're all over the newswires my boy," he loudly proclaimed, pressing the play button, as Cornelia, like a caged panther, moved to beside Suzaku watch it.

The news header already made him sick and confused all at the same time.

**The Knight, The Dragon, and The Princess?**

It then popped up with a news anchor who quickly introduced himself.

"In a press release issued just a few moments ago, His Glorious Imperial Majesty Charles zi Britannia's office has declared Princess Nunnally vi Britannia's rescue from the forces of the Black Knight's during the Battle of Tokyo. From what is being reported, both the Princess, and her older brother, Prince Lelouch, had been held by Zero before the Black Knight's appearance. Unfortunately, we regret to inform the viewers that in the midst of negotiations to free the royal siblings, Zero chose to execute Prince Lelouch…," the newscaster dramatically lowered his head.

Suzaku could only feel the bile rise in the back of his throat as he watched it continue.

_Lies, it's all lies….I killed Zero! I killed Lelouch! _

"It was only with the providential decision by His Glorious Imperial Majesty, that a special operations force was dispatched supported by Sir Suzaku Kururugi, an Eleven, that Princess Nunnally was rescued. During the fighting, it has been confirmed that Sir Kururugi slayed the criminal Zero in battle."

An image of Suzaku, looking towards the camera before he was about to step into the Lancelot was displayed, showing him waving towards someone off-camera. Almost immediately, Suzaku recognized it from a deployment when Euphemia sent him off.

"Sir Kururugi, an Eleven, is best known for his knighting by the late Princess Euphemia, Britannia bless her soul, and his heroic stand at Fukuda base. With Princess Nunnally's safe return, His Glorious Imperial Majesty, in recognition for the actions of Sir Kururugi, has issued a proclamation awarding Sir Kururugi the Star of Eowyn."

Cornelia stiffened, as she heard Cecile gasp, the Star of Eowyn was the highest military honor a Britannian could achieve. It bestowed the hereditary title of Baron upon the recipient and any future generations in his or her line. The last recipient of the Star was almost fifty years ago in recognition for preventing the assassination of the 96th Emperor. To have a Number receive such an honor, it was inconceivable. Yet…

0000000000000000000000000000 

A flying Zero mask slammed into the wall as Lelouch watched the news report, his face tightened in fury as it replayed the top story.

_This is Schneizel's doing. Only he would do something as ruthlessly calculative to undermine the Black Knights as to use Nunnally like this to cause to damage what little credibility we have left. Add on to that the idea of the first Baron who was a Number, it will suddenly give hope to the Japanese who see how this man can rise from nothing to power within Britannia. Discredit and defeat the Black Knights, then hint at another path. Even if the path truly isn't there, just the mere hope of it will drive the masses into their hands. Of course, Schneizel has to overcome the actions of Euphemia, but by mentioning negotiations, he can then show that Euphemia was forced into actions outside her control and playing into Zero's hand. How could I have been so foolish not to see that possibility?!_

His hands balled into fists as he ground his teeth, his eyes like daggers pointed at the screen.

_We can't win here now, not now. We need time….I need to rein in Tohdoh now. He's by now drawing the line between my animosity towards Katase when I was a child to his death. I'll get the vote, now with the actions taken by Britannia. But Tohdoh is the lynchpin to my designs._

Suddenly a chime sounded at his door, causing him to snap out of his thoughts as he had begun devising new strategies.

"Lelouch," Kallen's voice sounded against the door, "can I come in."

Running his hand through his hair, he got up and over to the door, hitting the release.

The door opened as Kallen looked at him with some trepidation. He simply motioned her in, which she did, allowing the door to close and him to lock it again.

Kallen immediately saw the newsfeed playing on his computer, taking a breath before she turned around.

"I'll do it. Geass."

"May I ask why you came to this decision," Lelouch asked, inwardly grateful for her decision, it was sooner than he expected, but he suspected that this…farce, drove her to a decision.

"Because you're right, Lelouch," she responded, "I can't let my hang-ups prevent me from using this power you've given me. I made a promise to you to fulfill your wish. I failed you once, I am not going to fail you again."

"….Thank you Kallen. It means more to me than you could possibly know."

"So where do we go from here?"

"It's quite simple," he made a motion towards the news on his computer, "we define what your Geass is, and then we begin training you for war, not just with Geass, but as my herald."

"Herald…..I think," she said, a smile not so much unlike his own framing her face, "I think I like that title."

Lelouch could only mirror that smile.

0000000000000000000000000000 

_2 Days Later_

"Sir Suzaku Kururugi," the sergeant-at-arms declared as the doors opened to the audience chamber of the Emperor of Britannia, Charles zi Britannia.

Suzaku took a deep steadying breath as he stepped in the door and began walking in; clad in attire very much similar to the wardrobe he had worn for Euphemia's Knighting. It had only been two days since the announcement of his awarding of the Star of Eowyn and in that time, he had been on a rollercoaster.

Already his ear was repaired, for some reason, the moment the media personnel had discovered the injuries he had sustained, had immediately dispatched several royal physicians to look him over to make sure he was "prettied up". They had already done surgery to repair his ear, which he was thankful for, but he had immediately drawn the line at the wound that ran down his cheek. The physicians had protested, but Suzaku had refused to budge, eventually the media types admitting it elicited a "roguish charm" that would do well in several of the noble circles, especially the women.

Since the conversation with Cornelia, something that both saddened and puzzled him, he had not had a single moment to sit and talk with her. They had both been whisked away and kept separate. He honestly wanted to talk to her more; there was just something he couldn't put his finger on. The prospect of a shared misery probably what attracted him to wanting to speak with her, but he was not sure.

As his eyes surreptitiously scanned over the gathering of nobles that lined both sides of the aisle that he walked down, he recognized now exactly how Lelouch had felt. The very feeling of this room was akin to throwing oneself headlong into a den of asps. The levels of hostility that seemed to rebound off the walls appalled and enraged him.

But he couldn't focus on that, his duty was to accept this award and be done.

His eyes made momentary contact with Cornelia as soon as they found her, locking with hers even as he walked. But a minute shake of the head made him realized in that moment of silent communication that Cornelia was informing him what he had feared most. Nunnally wasn't here. It was almost scary how she was on his page. But also the severe expression on her face informed him the folly of letting his eyes wander even infinitesimally, as he quickly refocused completely forward on Charles zi Britannia, who sat upon his throne at the end of the room.

He came to a stop before the stairs and brought himself to a knee.

"Your Highness, Sir Suzaku Kururugi, reporting as summoned," he said, keeping his head bowed and eyes locked onto the lip of the stair before him.

He knelt there for what seemed like an eternity beyond what protocol dictated, before the Emperor finally spoke.

"Sir Kururugi, approach the throne," his voice boomed.

"Yes, Your Highness," he acknowledged, stepping up the stairs before coming before the throne.

He stood there for a moment as the Emperor slowly rose from the throne, his purple eyes, a shade darker than Lelouch studied him. The man was a mountain, even towering over Suzaku as he looked down.

He then reached over to the open case where the Star of Eowyn sat in the finely lacquered wooden case as he grabbed the medal by the straps. It was then that Suzaku got a firm look at the medal. It was an eight-pointed star, with the standard main arms were gold and at ninety degree angles, while the other four arms were made in silver and half the size of the primary arms, each at a forty-five degree angle. At the end of each "arm" was a diamond encrusted in the frame.

"Sir Kururugi, in recognition for your efforts in serving the Imperial Family with valor and honor, I bestow upon you the Star of Eowyn," Charles voice was so resounding it almost seemed like it was echoing in his head, "In recognition of this honor, I also bestow upon the title of Baron."

He then proceeded to lock the clasp behind Suzaku's neck, his eyes never leaving Suzaku's as Suzaku returned the gaze with an equal ferocity.

"Thank you, Your Highness," Suzaku found himself saying, sticking to protocol as the Emperor stepped back.

Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, he spotted the Knight of One, Bismarck von Waldstein suddenly enter in his periphery; in his hand, still within its scabbard while on an ornate pillow, was the Britannian Sword of State.

"Kneel, Baron Kururugi," Charles commanded, as suddenly the entire world began spinning for him, as he immediately complied, his head bowed back down.

A murmur that had began to reach a dull crescendo suddenly was stilled by the whisper of metal sliding gently against steel as the Emperor unsheathed it, holding it before him.

He then placed the sword on Suzaku's right shoulder, before bringing it over Suzaku's head and down on his left.

"Baron Kururugi. Wilt though, upon this day, pledge they fealty to thy Emperor, and stand as a Knight of the Round."

"Yes, Your Highness."

"Does thy wish to abandon thyself and become thy Sword and Shield? To become the Arbiter of thy Emperor's Will?"

"Yes, Your Highness."

"Recite the Oath of the Knights of the Round."

"Peace is a lie, there is only War. Through War, do I gain Strength. Through Strength, do I gain Power. Through Power, do I gain Victory. Through Victory, do I serve my Emperor. For my life, my soul, my very essence is the Emperor's and the Emperor's alone"

"Rise, Baron Suzaku Kururugi. Rise and assume the title of the Knight of Eleven."

A/N: Well, if I was complaining about the difficulty of the previous chapter, ooooh boy, it doesn't hold a candle to this chapter. So many moments, so many scenes that just caused me headaches and worries of capturing the characters and the events.

But, the end result I am quite happy with. The only problem is, where to now, there is so much material and drama and interactions I can focus on here. I honestly need to go back to the Ashford Crow, but also, I think I should give some focus and love to Cecile and Lloyd.

But also, I think one of the big surprises, at least for me, was how well Cornelia and Suzaku worked out. I had spent five hours tearing out my hair just trying to get it down.

To be honest, trying to capture that Cornelia who has been rendered bare, but still has that inner strength and clarity, was probably the hardest prospect this chapter. I wanted her to retain that inner strength, but still face the fact that her world has been turned upside down. She's failed in her duty, Euphie is dead, Lelouch is revealed as Zero and is dead, the Tokyo Settlement is a wasteland, and her savior is the very Eleven she had previously spit upon, even though she knighted him. The fact that she isn't curled up in a ball or lashing out is a testament to the fact that she as an iron will. But even the most strongest of people have a breaking point. Suzaku is probably the only one who would understand the grief thanks to their commonality.

Also, I would like to explain Kallen, why she seemed to hem and haw on Geass. To be honest, Geass is all about subjugation and oppression, Kallen has been fighting against a Britannia has that oppressed and subjugated the Japanese. To suddenly have a power that pretty much makes her the very thing she is fighting against is what is causing her so much issue. But, as you can see, in the end, it was all about Kallen getting her house in order. So I hope that is acceptable.

All in all, 34 pages in 5 days. I'm a wreck.

Also, on a final note. If any of you note some Easter eggs, please let me know, I interspersed a few in the writing just as a quiet joke to myself.


	5. Machinations

Aria Quatre

Machinations

"Rise, Baron Suzaku Kururugi. Rise and assume the title of the Knight of Eleven."

Did he...just call Kururugi the Knight of Eleven, Cornelia thought in disbelief, but the answer already was there as she watched Suzaku's jaw clench slightly, but his eyes stared directly forward.

As if affirming it further for her, Guinevere su Britannia, First Princess of Britannia, brought her hand up to her mouth as she made a faint gurgle of amusement into it.

She felt a flash of irrational fury as she fought to tamp it down. Of all the most disgusting cheap shots to someone who did not wholly deserve it.

Yet there it was, she realized that all of this was one massive dog-and-pony show to pat Pax Britannia on the back, because one of their "dogs" had proven to be extraordinary. Even Suzaku must have realized what was going to happen. Yet he had willingly come here, to the very heart of the people who subjugated his homeland.

Because it's my penance, his words rang in her head.

Just what kind of penance would require him to fight against his own people, to kill his own friend, and then in the moment of recognition, be slapped back down in reminder of exactly who he is and how much he truly matters?

Just how many more indignities could he take, just what did he do to believe he earned this, and how much more suffering does he expect before he washes himself of it?

But then, suddenly, like a gunshot, a single pair of hands clapped together, causing her head to snap to her half- brother Schneizel, whose hands rang steadily in a lonely round of applause.

It seemed as if the dynamics had suddenly changed in the room with Schneizel's entrance into the situation, as the various nobles and royals weighed their odds, and began joining in after Cornelia put the final nail in the coffin for their hesitation.

However, it did not take much for Cornelia to wonder exactly what Schneizel's game was, something she would not have previously done in the past.

0000000000000000000000000000 

If this was a reception honoring his achievements, then he sure as hell wondered exactly what his execution would look like, Suzaku thought darkly as he stood quietly against the wall watching what could only be described as a pompous display of the narcissistic tendencies of the royal family.

_Lelouch was right, _he thought painfully at the memory, _the Britannian royal family is out of touch._

Only a handful of times had he even been approached during the reception ball in his honor. It was damnably obvious that it was still considered inappropriate to even converse with him, despite his noble title and rank as a Knight of the Round.

Of course, that hadn't stopped the Knight of One, and the Knight of Three, Gino Weinberg, from coming and congratulating him for his accomplishments. Lloyd and Cecile had both also wished him well, before being whisked away by a noble about Knightmare Frame development.

So now, here he stood, watching the going-ones with a sharp and critical eye, now dressed resplendently in the uniform of the Knights of the Round, however, like the rest of the Knights he had foregone the cloak.

Baron. That was something he needed to get used to. Never in his life had expected to rise this quickly within Britannia when he had decided to join in the military. In fact, a part of him predicted he would have been dead by now, and it would have been true…if not for Lelouch.

_Lelouch_, he thought, his mind wandering back. That had been something he had been focused on over the last two days, as much as he wanted to avoid it. He had known Lelouch had an unbridled hatred of Britannia and he had sworn to destroy it, but there was a difference between words and actions.

That was something he would truly never understand. Why Lelouch had taken up the mantle of Zero and used the Japanese. Because that was all he did do, use them. He had no doubt the rebels were unaware of who he was, judging by Kallen's reaction.

But that was now all water under the bridge, Lelouch was dead. The Japanese had lost the remaining capable leader of their rebellion. It was only a matter of time before peace was established in Japan, and then, he could help and make sure it could begin healing.

But the losses…just….the losses. The body count was still piling up, but because of the actions of his best friend, thousands of people were dead, all for nothing.

"Excuse me, Sir…My Lord," a low tremulous voice that just had a small amount of firmness in it brought him out of his brooding.

He tipped his head up to look into the chocolate-brown eyes of a servant who held a tray of glasses in her left hand. The fear was palpable in her expression, as if approaching him was dangerous to her health. Almost immediately, he could tell the reason why, just running his eyes over her, he could tell that she was Japanese by her features, her hair tied back in a classic Britannian fashion that did not take away from her position as a servant.

"Champagne," she asked.

He glanced her over for a second as if trying to figure out if this was a test, before he took the proffered champagne flute off the tray, noting the looks as if everyone was now focused on the two of them.

"Thank you," he replied with a small smile.

The woman made a small bow before retreating away, her job performed.

Looking over the glass for a moment, he decided that it would be in bad form to accept the drink and then not drinking it. Still, the kindness shown should not be taken lightly, as he sipped the champagne, allowing the sickly sweet alcohol slide down his throat.

Finishing it, he quietly brought it back down, making a note to not have another. Even with his experience with alcohol since his Knighting ceremony with Euphie, another internal cringe, there was just something so disgustingly wrong with this drink. Though, he was grateful for the kindness of the servant, she had been the first one he hadn't known who had shown any.

His eyes roamed over the gathering again, looking for Cornelia, who had been surprisingly absent. He didn't even understand why he would be looking for her; it wasn't like they had anything between them. Other than the lapse she had where she acted completely unlike herself in his room, he didn't have any reason to be concerned for her.

The sound of glass shattering caused his senses to tauten as his feet brought him to action. Moving swiftly through the group that had brought itself to a stop he came to the opening to where the commotion had taken place.

Down on her knees, gathering the glass up with her bare hands was the servant who had just given him champagne only a few moments ago. It was obvious from the cursory glance that the reddening palm print on the servant girl's face that what had happened was not an accident.

It was then his eyes trailed up to the figure standing over her, a look of fury on the figure's face as his mind already identified from the heart tattoo on the subjects left breast as being that of the First Princess Guinevere su Britannia, even before he made it to her face.

"This is a ballroom reception for one of your kind receiving the highest honor in Britannia," she declared, even as the people around her watched in amusement, disgusting Suzaku, "to think you could be careful enough not to denigrate him further with your incompetency."

The servant did well to keep her head down, even as she desperately tried to gather up the broken glassware, not responding, even though Suzaku caught a glimpse of anger flash in her eyes.

"Are you even listening to me, Eleven," Guinevere demanded, moving closer, angry that she wasn't getting the cowering that she had expected.

"Your Highness," Suzaku called, seeing enough and interspersing himself between the First Princess and the servant, "I think she has learned her lesson."

It was enough to startle her, her mind suddenly comprehending that someone was actually interfering with her display, but not only was it someone, but it was the man of the hour.

"Baron," she said sweetly, so sweet that a part of Suzaku resisted the urge to gag, "I was just correcting the behavior of a servant who chose to make a mockery of your reception."

"It's fine," Suzaku replied, keeping his face as straight as possible to the lie, before giving an amused smile as he had an errant thought that had flitted through his head, "Elevens are used to being made a mockery of."

It was a measured slight, something that played an element of self-deprecation, and something entirely Lelouch, he thought, but it had its measured effect, as Guinevere obviously must have realized that he had heard the majority of what she had been saying.

"You might have the trappings of a Britannian," she seethed in acknowledgement, "but it's obvious that once a dog always a dog, coming to the defense of your own kind."

"And here you are, elder sister," a familiar voice called out, "lowering yourself to the level of arguing with dogs. How unbecoming to waste your time in this venal excuse of a petty game."

It was then that Cornelia chose to make her appearance, sliding out of the crowd and into the center of attention.

"I thought it smelled faintly of gunpowder and death in here," Guinevere replied, her voice maddeningly normal, "but then again, I have to remember, most of that is from your own men and charges at Tokyo."

Cornelia's face darkened, Guinevere hitting an evidently sore spot, but before Cornelia could continue a new challenger entered the fray.

"I find that somewhat entertaining, dear sister, considering you have not seen a battlefield in your life," Prince Schneizel observed, "instead you ensconce yourself in wasting time, money, and resources on items that could hardly be defined as art with individuals of doubtful repute."

"How dare you Schneizel."

"Remember dear sister, I am the one who holds the purse strings as Prime Minister," he reminded her, and then he looked around.

"I take it everyone has enjoyed their entertainment for the evening," he called out, causing some bouts of nervous laughter and averted gazes. It was considered bad luck to witness a sibling tiff in public, "Carry on."

Taking the offered escape, the gathering started dispersing as music started recommencing, even as three juggernauts of royalty continued their staredown.

It was Guinevere that was the first to blink, throwing up her hand in dismissal, "And here I was trying to help," she then took her leave, a few of her crony girls following behind her.

"Well," Schneizel huffed, "that was interesting."

He then looked over the servant girl as a few other servants intervened in helping her clean up the mess.

"You can take the rest of the night off," he said in a tone that implied he cared, "I think you have earned it after dealing with the vindictiveness of the First Princess."

The servant girl bowed her head, sensing the dismissal and took her leave.

"Now then," Schneizel continued, noting how Cornelia had even in the short time since his defusing of the situation had drawn closer to Kururugi, and interesting tidbit of information that would need to be observed later, "Lord Kururugi, a congratulations are in order."

"Thank you, Your Highness."

_Yes, definitely something to look at_, Schneizel thought watching Cornelia look ready to breathe fire in his presence. It could just be that she was still angry at him for his orders, but the way she had come to the defense of the Kururugi boy hinted that there might be something more.

"Your Highness," Kanon Maldini, his major-domo and aide-de-camp quietly murmured, "the Duke of Charleston needed your presence."

"Of course, Kanon," he replied, "well, sister, Lord Kururugi, I will take my leave."

He then started walking away before stopping.

"Oh, I forgot, Lord Kururugi, I would like to discuss with you later a deployment to Europe. It seems the Europeans need a lesson in manners, and a few of my generals are clamoring for your skills. How about the day after tomorrow, so you can begin getting your house in order?"

"That would be fine, Your Highness," Suzaku responded.

"Good, see you then" with that, Schneizel took his leave.

"Come with me," Cornelia commanded, and Suzaku, despite all that had gone on, chose it was probably wiser, considering the steel in her tone, to simply obey than to argue.

Following her as she led him through the crowd, all the while noting the glances and the murmurs, she led him through a set of ornate doors and onto a balcony.

"Not even a day in and you're picking enemies with the wrong people," Cornelia noted with wry amusement as they came to the edge of the balcony overlooking the lights of Pendragon.

"I apologize if I offended your sensibilities," Suzaku replied guardedly, noting that Cornelia had not turned around yet.

"Oh, I'm not offended, it was actually nice seeing my older sister being irritated," she said finally, turning around, "Guinevere has always been one of the most….sheltered of my siblings. No, what I'm worried about is the fact that you are already making enemies that are significantly more powerful than you, Kururugi. You happen to notice the two light blue haired teens skulking in the shadows during your tit for tat with Guinevere?"

"Vaguely," Suzaku responded.

"Castor and Pollux rui Britannia, they are two siblings you really don't want to mess with," Cornelia noted with disdain, "when they're not on the battlefield, they're here doing Guinevere's bidding. Picking a fight with Guinevere over something as trivial as a servant was just a mistake Suzaku, the reason why she spends so frivolously is because she believes she can buy the Empire without getting her hands dirty. This means she has a lot of allies who will do anything to please her for either the money or her graces."

"I can handle myself," he dismissed it, even as Cornelia leaned against the railing a severe expression on her face at his reply.

"You don't get it Suzaku, I'm not just talking death here," she responded angrily, "you're in a game now in which it is not life or death, people can and will harm you through other means than physical harm because you are a Baron and a Knight of the Round who just so happens to be an Eleven. And you've already given them the ammunition to do it. Just what did you think you were doing?"

"I couldn't let her get punished for her kindness," Suzaku responded quietly.

"That's IT? Suzaku Kururugi, that is her job. As callous as it sounds, she is a servant, I don't know that girl's story, but there is a reason she is here. You can't accomplish anything by muddying your hands in something beyond your control."

"And what would you like me to do," Suzaku shot back, "sit there and let a poor girl get punished for her kindness to me?"

"YES," Cornelia hissed, pushing herself off the rail, "because all you have done is paint a target on both your back, and that girl's back. You need to understand, you cannot save everyone, no matter how hard you try. You need to learn to choose your battles wisely, because you're not going to get anywhere unless you play the game."

"And why would I want to play the game," he demanded, "I'm here to fight for Britannia."

"But you have to," Cornelia replied, "it's no longer a simple matter of fighting and winning, you are now involved in the politics of Britannia. You need sponsors and allies."

"So what would you have me do then?"

"Let me help," she offered, "I have some contacts and people that can assist you, because tomorrow, you need to fulfill the paperwork for your barony. Second, you need to enlist a guard," she held up a hand to stop him as he began to protest, "Suzaku, let me finish. You need a Knight guard, because as a noble Knight of the Round, you are required to have a guard. Second, you need an advisor, because the politics are only going to get worse once you are awarded your title and land. I happen to have someone who can fulfill both of what you need."

"And if I refuse?"

"Suzaku, please," Cornelia started, calmly, even though she looked ready to strangle him for his stubbornness, "do this for Euphie. I don't think she would want to see you self-destruct like this.

This caused Suzaku to pause, retort ready on his lips. Because Cornelia was right, Euphie would not want to see him end up like this. And Cornelia was asking, no, scratch that, pleading him in her own way, to let her help.

"Very well."

"Thank you. I'll meet you at your temporary lodging at nine."

A sudden clearing of a throat caused both of them to snap and focus on the source, the Knight of One, who stood just outside of the door leading back into the ball.

"My apologies, Your Highness, Lord Kururugi," he stated, "but the Emperor would like to speak with Lord Kururugi privately."

Cornelia kept her face carefully guarded even as she wondered how he could slip in without the either of them noticing, it was like he was a ghost at times. Then again, he was referred to as the Emperor's Shadow behind his back for good reason.

"Of course, Lord Waldstein," Suzaku replied, "I take my leave, Your Highness."

Cornelia nodded, allowing him to leave with the Knight of One.

"My apologies, Lady Cornelia," Guilford stated, coming through the door, "but he demanded I not say a word."

"How long was he there, Guilford?"

"Only a few seconds, he may have caught the last part of the exchange," he admitted, bowing his head slightly in apology.

She sighed, massaging her temple, feeling the oncoming rush of another headache. The doctors had told her the symptoms of her concussion would eventually fade, but for now, she needed to take it easy when she exactly couldn't afford to do so.

"Tell me Guilford, am I right in doing this," she asked.

"My Lady," he asked, obviously confused by such a question.

"Helping Lord Kururugi, should I even bother," she clarified for him.

"I don't know, My Lady," he admitted with a frown, "not a week ago you would have had Kururugi beheaded for even looking at you funny."

"I know….but it's for Euphie," she replied with a deep sigh, keeping the massage on her forehead up, a grimace on her face, "I don't think she would be happy if I didn't help Kururugi. Even if every smart part of me suggests I wash my hands of him."

Guilford didn't respond, obviously at a loss of how to respond to such a rhetorical question, instead he chose to try and take Cornelia's mind off the loaded issue.

"I take it by the person you're referring to help Lord Kururugi, you mean…him."

"Yes, I mean him," Cornelia responded, a smirk appearing on her face, "not a lot of people I can turn to for something as loaded as this."

A wry chuckle escaped Guilford's lips as he shook his head, "In that case, I think you can rest safely in the knowledge that your help could also be a mixed blessing for Kururugi."

"You're right," she replied, the smirking turning to a wide grin, "I think Kururugi will both love and hate him. I know I do."

0000000000000000000000000000 

"Lord Kururugi, Your Majesty."

"Leave us," Charles commanded from his throne, allowing Bismarck to leave as Suzaku moved forward, a sense of foreboding creeping into his mind even as he brought himself to a knee at the throne.

"I see you have already caused some waves, Kururugi," the Emperor rumbled, looking down on him.

"I apologize, Your Majesty."

"What you do in your spare time is of no consequence to me. However, how you serve me is what matters. Tell me, Kururugi, you desire the position of the Knight of One."

_Am I that obvious_, Suzaku thought, keeping his head down, _can I be read that easily?_

"Of course you do," Charles continued, amusement lacing his tone, "you want to use the position to govern Area 11 for yourself. It is your penance for the sins you have committed. After all, you killed your own father, didn't you?"

Suzaku's eyes widened as he fought to keep his head from snapping up.

_How could he possibly know?_

"Lord Kururugi, I have only one requirement and that is absolute loyalty to me. However in your case, I feel that your pledge of loyalty is not enough to ensure that you remain loyal. Therefore, I have decided to take a more proactive approach in your case. If you fail or disappoint me, there will be far-reaching repercussions."

"Repercussions, Your Majesty?"

"To Area 11," the Emperor responded, "or quite possibly, to those you value."

Keeping his face straight he brought his gaze up to his Emperor, catching the unsaid meaning. There was only one person who he valued, Nunnally. How the Emperor knew was beyond him, but the threat now existed.

"I will not fail you, Your Majesty," he found himself saying, even though internally he was screaming about how this was wrong, how this wasn't what he wanted.

"Good," the Emperor responded, "I have decided to award you the estates that your family had previously possessed, as well as a sizable area of land in which you can administrate your barony. Lord Kururugi. However, you will only have two weeks until you will be deployed to Europe to assist in our new offensive planned against the Normandy coast. I suggest that you use that time wisely."

"As you wish, Your Majesty," Suzaku found himself responding, even as he wished to know more of who the Emperor was threatening. However, it was not wise to ask questions of those who had the power to let you live or die in the single blink of an eye.

"Leave me," he dismissed, allowing Suzaku to quickly offer another bow, before Suzaku took his leave.

_All of this_, he thought frustratedly as he allowed the doors to close behind him, Bismarck slipping into antechamber behind him to rejoin his Emperor.

_All that I have done. All the sacrifices. All of the people I have killed and lost. All of this._

His fists clenched.

_And I'm exactly back to square one._

0000000000000000000000000000 

It had been two days since the Six Houses of Kyoto had voted to keep Zero as the leader and since then he had not been seen. All that was known was that he was sealed up in his quarters, obviously scheming something new for the Black Knights. The only person that had been seen going in and out had been Kouzuki.

For her, that was fine, it was perfect that he was cut off from everyone else. It allowed her to do what she knew had to be done.

She looked quietly around the corridor, now in the "evening" on the submarine, looking for any witnesses, even as she kept moving along. It would not be good for anyone to witness her for the actions she was about to partake in.

It wasn't right. That was the only thing repeating in her mind. Tohdoh should be the commander, he hadn't betrayed them like that Britannian.

She had quietly rejoiced when Kozuki had announced Zero had been killed. He had abandoned them to their deaths; he deserved a traitor's death.

But then like a horrible dream that could not be awakened from he had reappeared. Even worse, he was a Britannian Prince, a member, formerly did not excuse him, of the sworn enemy of Japan.

And then they had not only forgiven him, but they had reinstated him. OVER TOHDOH!

Unforgivable, it could not be allowed to continue. Tohdoh would quietly abide, because that was how he was. But to continue to follow Zero was the path to destruction.

That was why she was doing this, for Japan...and for Tohdoh.

The coast clear, since the submarine was operating at night conditions, she then quietly moved up to the door to Zero's quarters.

Taking one more look around she slid a small box over the key pad. She tapped the activation stub, letting the system kick in, as it began overriding the lock. A soft chirp signified its success as she glanced around one more time, before entering.

Little did she realize that she had been observed, as Kallen slid out of the shadows opening a mobile, it automatically connecting to her targeted recipient.

"Tohdoh, it's Kallen. Zero needs you in his quarters, its urgent."

There her target lay in his bed, flat on his back, the slow rise and fall of his chest indicating that he was asleep and unaware of her presence.

It was then she pulled out her deadly cargo, wrapped in an ornate cloth. Pulling the cloth aside, she revealed a katana within it.

Alex Koons: Carefully, she slid her katana out of its sheath, a soft rasping sound that sounded exquisite to her ear. This was the sword of her commissioning into the Four Holy Swords, something Tohdoh had given her. It had been one of the proudest moments of her life. And now, even in the knowledge that this was the end for her, she would pave the way for Tohdoh to lead Japan to freedom.

Fully unsheathed now, she looked down on the boy beneath her, rotating the katana around so it was pointed downward at him.

She then brought the katana down with one thrust, watching it pierce through the heart of Zero, watching his eyes snap open in reflex, before they began sliding back to a shut as the lifeblood flowed out of him.

It was then light flooded into the room from the door opening, but it was too late for Zero, she thought joyously, she had accomplished her mission and Tohdoh was now secure to lead them.

"Nagisa," Tohdoh's harsh voice caused her to be snapped out of her exultation, "what have you done?!"

She spun around as her world shattered to witness the only person she looked to staring at her in stunned fury, his mind already processing the scene.

But there was something that that struck her as odd. Behind Tohdoh, was Kozuki, she felt a flash of disgust, but instead of looking angry for what she had done she looked, almost like she pitied her.

But that was quickly discarded as she refocused upon Tohdoh.

"I did what was best for us. For the Black Knights. For Japan."

"By killing Zero? Are you insane?"

"I did this for you Tohdoh; you are the better leader for us. You care for Japan and you won't use us for power gain."

"This isn't the way."

"Of course it isn't Tohdoh. But it is the Japanese way."

It couldn't be, Nagisa screamed, it's not humanly possible.

Yet she couldn't help but note Tohdoh's expression of shock. Slowly she turned around to the sight of Zero, no, Lelouch vi Britannia, hand wrapped around the blade of the katana as he yanked it out, blood flowing down the blade from his hand.

Job completed, he swung the blanket off, allowing both her and Tohdoh to witness the wound where the katana had pierced resealing before them.

"That's impossible," Tohdoh breathed as Chiba's throat constricted in terror as those amethyst eyes leveled upon her, cool and without any discernible emotion.

"Kallen, seal the door," Lelouch calmly commanded, as if the blood sloughing off back as he stood up was an everyday occurrence.

"Impossible is merely the human expression for anything that escapes ones sphere of knowledge and understanding," he continued as he took the time to now to go quickly wipe his back off with a wetted down towel before tossing on a long-sleeve button-up shirt, the job done, he refocused again on Chiba for a moment.

"By the way Miss Chiba, could you not try that again? Regardless of that I can survive being fatally wounded, it's still rather irritating and painful, not to mention the cleanup can be rather irritating."

Chiba only recoiled in terror at the sight of the man she HAD killed not only up and walking, but talking as if nothing had happened.

"Kallen wasn't lying when she said that I had been killed, but death seems to have a fickle interest in toying with me. And that is where we come to the next chapter of this story."

"Tohdoh, what if I told you there were powers out there completely outside of the realm of reality? A power so capable, that it could bend the will of anyone to the whims of those who hold that power?"

"I would say that is far-fetched nonsense," Tohdoh responded.

"Really now," Lelouch responded with a smile, as Kallen walked over beside him, "Kallen, if you would."

Tohdoh watched as Kallen's eye flickered into an emblem much like the Black Knights, before Kallen cupped her face to prevent him from seeing it further as she looked towards Nagisa.

"Chiba Nagisa, please destroy your sword like the traitor you are."

It wasn't possible, Nagisa valued that sword, there was no way Nagisa would destroy her sword. It was the emblem of her membership in the Holy Swords. Even with her dishonorable actions.

"As you wish," Chiba responded a smile gracing her face, as Lelouch tossed her the katana, a demonic smile passing on his face.

Without a single hesitation, she placed it at an angle, then brought her foot down, snapping it cleanly in half. Her eyes then slid shut as if doing this was a pleasurable experience for her, before they suddenly snapped back open, looking around in confusion, before looking down at the broken katana in hand.

"What did I-"

"You punished yourself, Chiba Nagisa," Lelouch interrupted, "saving all of us the effort in punishing you."

Before she could answer, there was Kallen interposing herself as she held up her hand again.

"Forget about all of this and return to your quarters, you will forget ever threatening or attempting to kill Zero or Lelouch vi Britannia ever again," Kallen stated, even as Tohdoh felt a sickening sensation wash over him, he shook his head, feeling it clear away.

_Exactly what was that_, he thought.

"As you wish, Kallen," Chiba responded, she responded after a few moments, the same cycle of closed eyes before a small sigh, then taking her leave of them.

"How," Tohdoh asked, looking back to Lelouch and Kallen as Lelouch took the time to sit down in front of computer grabbing the black king piece, twirling it around in his hand.

"From what I can tell, Kallen's power manifests itself by the suggestion of reward. If my analysis is correct, the Geass manifests itself by manipulating the brain chemistry. By fulfilling the order or will of the giver, the recipient receives an abnormal dosage of dopamine. Like Pavlov's Dog, the recipient will seek to get that hit of a pleasurable feeling. It's a bit more sophisticated than what my Geass was."

"Geass?"

"The two supernatural forces that I refer to revolve around the symbiotic relationship between the Code, immortality and the ability to bestow Geass, and Geass, the power of the king. The power of Geass manifests itself through the basest wishes of the recipient. In my case, it was the ability to command people to my whims. In Kallen's case, it is to seduce them to her wishes to serve me."

"Indeed. Much of the Black Knight's success comes from the strategic and tactical usage of Geass, but there is a healthy dose of the sheer determination and skill from all of you who complete this. Geass is merely an arrow in my quiver."

"Is that how you got Princess Euphemia to become the Massacre Princess?"

"That was...unfortunate, but we'll revisit that in a moment."

"What Lelouch wanted to talk to you about, but knew you would not believe in until you saw this demonstration, was that he wants you with his inner circle of people who are aware of Geass."

"And why is that, Kozuki?"

"Because there are more Geass users out there and to act as a buffer in the event that something happens that is outside my calculations," Lelouch answered.

"Like what?"

"Runaway Geass," he responded, pain filling his tone as his hand stopped twirling the chess piece.

Here was the grand gamble, either he could win Tohdoh here, or Kallen would have to act, it was an unsavory tactic, but petting Tohdoh run free was an even larger gamble.

"It was a miscalculation upon my part. I was aware of the probability of a runaway Geass, but I did not expect it during my meeting with Euphemia. When I joked that I could order her to kill all the Japanese."

"You weren't aware that it was active. Sloppy, Zero."

Lelouch looked in surprise at Tohdoh, he would have expected a dressing down, or at least indignant fury, but to have Tohdoh criticize his act as sloppy.

Tohdoh must have been reading his mind, because he leaned against the door staring down Lelouch.

"I will not act like I am not angry with you for what happened. You are responsible for the slaughter of innocent Japanese citizens. But now that I know why it happened and I know it weighs on you more than you're willing to admit. I remember the intelligence on the relationships between the royal siblings. You cared for her almost as much as Nunnally. Because of your sloppy and overconfident actions, this event will live with you forever, since it appears you are now a bearer of one of these...Codes."

"Indeed, Euphemia was a mistake," Lelouch lamented, "and the ensuing casualties are solely my fault."

"Just like General Katase..."

"Yes. I did that, to prevent him from going to the Chinese Federation. He was willing to side with the people that once Britannia was defeated, would turn around and enslave Japan. I couldn't let him take you and the JLF to China and become pawns in their game."

Tohdoh sighed.

"I disagreed with Katase's choices, but I am a soldier, even if I disagree with my commander, I must obey the chain of command."

"An admirable trait that suits you well. You are a soldier through and through, not prone to the passions that some of your subordinates fell to."

Tohdoh nodded at the obvious compliment before crossing his arms.

"So what now Zero?"

"Two things. First, I wish to offer you Geass-"

"No."

"Very well," he had expected that answer, but it was better to cover that base, "the second is that I will pledge here and now, that if you follow me without fail for the next two years, regardless of our preparations, I will launch an attack to retake Japan."

"So that is what you have been scheming. You aren't planning to take back Japa-"

I don't just plan on retaking Japan Tohdoh, I plan on destroy Britannia so utterly that not even the history books will remember its passing. Japan is merely a battle in that war, we need to create an organization of United Nations. We need the forces because even if we retake Japan, we will be fighting a two front war."

"But you're suggesting that we forsake Japan."

"I am not; I am merely suggesting we change the beat of this dance. Schneizel and the Emperor have replaced despair with a modicum of hope. We can't fight that at our current strength, and we can't recruit without an absolute surety of that the people are loyal to us now that Britannia has opened a door for advancement. Two years, Tohdoh, two years and I promise the Nisshōki will fly over Japan again. All I ask for is your loyalty."

"Who else will you include among your inner circle aware of Geass?"

"Besides you? I plan to add Senba and Urabe. They are both level-headed and capable; they will also serve as excellent commanders as we expand. Asahina needs to grow before I consider him, and I don't need to say anything about Chiba."

"I agree, as far as I am concerned she will not command unless something drastic changes. Who else?"

"Chawla. She is actually my second choice. We need to devise systems to protect against those in the know about Geass and our own soldiers from Britannia's Geass users."

"Britannia has Geass users?"

"I wouldn't be stunned. It makes sense in the grand scheme of things if the Emperor has it, because that would explain why the Reign of Blood ended so abruptly. Right now I have someone infiltrating into an organization I believe is possibly attached to Britannian research and development into Geass."

Tohdoh nodded absorbing the information.

"What about Ohgi and the Houses of Kyoto?"

"Until I can ascertain why Ohgi seems to want to strangle the life out of me," this brought a snort from Kallen as she shook her head, causing Lelouch to smirk, "he is out. Kirihara is probably the only one I would trust with this information until we can pull them out and get them to a safer position."

"Very well then, Zero…no, Lelouch vi Britannia, for now, you will have my loyalty."

"That is all that I can ask for Tohdoh. Thank you."

Tohdoh nodded, choosing to take his leave, leaving Kallen and Lelouch alone again.

"Well, that went especially well," Lelouch observed, back to twirling the black king.

"So, what is next, Lelouch," she asked, looking over the chessboard with a modicum of interest before focusing upon him, "you now have Tohdoh. Where do we go from here?"

Lelouch smiled at her for a moment, a smile that only maddened her before he placed down the black king, quietly placing the pieces in their starting positions.

"What do you think about chess, Kallen?"

* * *

A/N: Let me be the first to apologize on the shortness of the chapter. The previous chapter drained a lot out of me when I sat down to write it. But also, I felt that it might have had a negative impact on some readers because of the overall length.

But also, I felt that I was ending at a good position, the very definition of machinations is the scheming or planning for possibly evil intentions. In a way, where I ended fulfilled that title. I would have preferred to add on two or three more scenes, but I think it might be chewing off a bit more than I can handle so I just ended it there.

I would like to thank Sephiroth12285, HolyKnight05, and Margery for their assistance in this chapter. I know I told you all that I was planning to write more, but meh, things happens.

And now, back to my classwork, starting next week I will have a lot more time, so I hope to maybe churn out a chapter every five days or so until university starts back up in January.

Until then, hope you all enjoyed it.


	6. Luft

Aria Cinq

**Luft**

"So where are we going," Suzaku asked looking out the window of Cornelia's armored car, which was more like a tank than a luxury vehicle, Cornelia and Guilford sitting across from him.

"Like I told you at the ball, we're going to see a friend who can help you."

He nodded in response, going back to looking out, distracted in his own thoughts as to the events of past night.

"Are you positive about this Princess," Guilford spoke, "he isn't exactly one I would employ under any circumstances."

"And why is that Guilford?"

"He's a bit of an eccentric."

Cornelia could only smirk in response to Guilford's discomfort.

"We've already talked about this Guilford, he's perfect for this case, and I know he's not exactly one to sit on his thumbs doing nothing. Odds are he's probably already aware we're going to come knocking."

Guilford sighed, settling back in the chair as an uneasy silence settled in the car.

A short time later, the car came to a stop, jarring Suzaku out of his thoughts, as he took in the surroundings.

"The Royal Military Academy," Suzaku asked, as he left the car.

"He's currently doing a stint here teaching advanced Knightmare tactics," Cornelia explained, "not by his own choice. But I'll let him explain that when meet him."

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It only took a few more minutes, but when Cornelia stopped at the door she took one more look at Suzaku, before opening the door.

Suzaku immediately recognized the almost collegiate atmosphere. It was a theater setup, with the center of the class ending in a pit.

It was then he spied two people. One was black individual with his feet up on the desk, in an decidedly unscholastic posture, his head deep in a book, which to Suzaku's shock, looked like a Japanese manga. Beside him was a small basket of rolled up paper balls, which he dipped his hand into all of a sudden to chuck it into the back of the second man at the chalkboard, the paper ball bouncing off his back before falling to the ground.

"You know Lee, if you want to get my attention, you could just talk," the man with his back to them retorted. Unlike his black counterpart, all that could be seen was the bleached white hair tied up into a ponytail that fell in between his upper shoulder blades.

He suddenly tensed.

"If that is you Bartlett, no, I'm not going to reconsider on your dissertation. It was one of the most droll, vapid dissertations I have ever heard, as well as incredibly wrong. Now if you would kindly come back during class hours, I will ignore the fact that you're trying to suck up to me."

"And here I thought you would already be trying to woo me like the rest of your harem," Cornelia responded as she walked down the stairs towards the pit, Guilford frowning deeply as Suzaku followed.

The man placed down the chalk that he had been using to write on the board, casting a glance over to the black individual who wore an award-winning smile. The man in question reached down and picked up one of the dozens of balls at his feet and tossed it back to the black man, hitting him in the face.

"Damn traitor," he called out, turning around to face them.

"Cornelia dear, didn't expect you to come visit lil 'ol me," he replied jovially, holding out a hand to Cornelia as she took it, then he pulled her into a hug, her cracking a small smile at the expression while Guilford frowned even deeper.

"It's good to see you again," the man said with a smile.

"Good to see you too, Al," she responded, breaking from the hug.

Now Suzaku got a good look at the man in question, other than the bleached white hair, he wore a pair of stylish glasses that highlighted his ice blue eyes, he a bit taller than Suzaku and more muscular. He looked to be in his late twenties.

"Baron Kururugi, I would like you to meet the Duke of New Haven, Alexander Knight," she said.

"Your reputation precedes you," the Duke noted, giving a small nod of the head, "my colleague over there with a shit-eating grin on his face is Sir Lee Swann, soon to be ex-Knightmare Frame pilot if he keeps debasing himself with all of his jackassery."

"We need to talk Al," Cornelia intoned, causing him to glance again over at the introduced Swann.

"Go and check on Keith and tell him we have guests. We'll be in my office."

Lee sighed, closing his book as he took his feet of the desk and got up.

"And this time don't swipe any of the cookies," the Duke asked with a pained tone, before focusing back upon the trio as Lee headed for the exit.

"If you would follow me. Gilly," this earned a twitch of his eye, "would you kindly guard the door to my office. I would prefer not to have any eavesdroppers."

"Your Highness," Guilford protested, looking to Cornelia, who gave him a small shrug.

"We are his guests," she replied.

"…as you wish, Princess," Guilford responded with just a hint of jealously in his tone, allowing the three of them to enter the room and close the door, taking up position to guard it.

The office was was completely bare except for the desk and a small stack of books and pads on it, what Suzaku gathered from it was either that the Duke wasn't interested in personalizing it, or he didn't expect to be here long enough to have to personalize it.

He then made a motion to the seats, which they took. He then took his spot in a luxurious leather chair, unfastening his hair once he had settled and letting it flow around him.

"Now Cornelia, what did you talk to me about," he asked, opening up a drawer and rummaging through the contents of it as he kept eye contact on the two, "I have a feeling it concerns the young Baron here and his current predicament."

"You always were the perceptive one Al," Cornelia conceded, "I was wondering if you would help advise him on his newfound nobility, and provide his guard."

"Always so demanding," he responded, leaning back in the chair, seeming to have found what he wanted in the desk, "you sure you don't want to be my wife, you always ask so much of me already."

"Oh stow it Al, you know you like it when I ask you to do something."

"I don't think my girlfriend appreciates you soliciting my services."

"Just because she has tried killing you twice doesn't make you her boyfriend Al."

"Any girl that has the balls to try and kill a Duke twice is a keeper," he responded with a shrug, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a silver case. He flipped it open and pulled out a cigarette, to Suzaku's surprise and dismay.

He began twirling it in his fingers as he looked over the two.

"So, advisory and protection. I take it you can get me out of this little arrangement my father's retainers made behind my back."

"Suzaku is a Knight of the Round, short of the Emperor countermanding it; he can do whatever he pleases, including selecting his protective detail."

"And what does the Baron think about this," he asked, looking towards Suzaku.

"I don't need your help or protection," Suzaku responded, more as a matter of rebellion. So far he could not see any reason why Cornelia was smitten with the idea of him providing any services. He seemed arrogant to the point where he might think himself God.

The Duke looked at him for a long time, then broke out laughing, his laugh echoing off the walls. As he calmed down, he took the cigarette and placed it in his mouth as he brought a small miniature torch and placed it at the end, igniting the torch and letting the blue flame light the end.

He then took a small drag before letting it out, the exhalation surprisingly not bitter and smoky like a cigarette to Suzaku's nose, it actually smelled relatively sweet.

". . . Greener than yesterday's grass. You truly like to bring me the hopelessly naive ones, Nelly."

"I thought you would like the challenge."

"Indeed."

The door opened, causing him stand up as a man in his mid to late thirties dressed in styling uniform that could be described as half military uniform, half butler attire, his brown hair slicked back and his brown eyes scanned over the room as he approached the gathering. On it were two cups, one of hot chocolate, the other a steaming coffee, and a small platter of hot cookies that he placed down equidistant from both the Duke and Cornelia.

"Baron Kururugi, let me introduce my majordomo, Keith Jenkins, or KJ. He helps run most of my day-to-day operations and makes sure I keep my nose relatively clean by scheduling accordingly," he said with a smile, the cigarette dangling from his lips as he glanced at his majordomo, "is she coming?"

"Yes, My Duke," the majordomo responded, a knock at the door before it opened.

Suzaku's head turned once again and to his surprise, he recognized the newcomer.

"You," Suzaku declared, staring at the young woman now dressed in a uniform much like the majordomos, except styled as a women's business suit.

She said nothing as she walked over to his side and placed before him, to his stunned amazement, a tray with sencha tea leaves, hot water, and a pot. The woman then stepped away and walked over beside Keith.

"She is my latest acquisition," Knight declared with a bit of pride in his voice, and to Suzaku's anger, because the way he made it sound, she was simply property, "after all, no one wanted her after a certain person, who I will not name, decided to take a stand for her disobeying direct orders."

Suzaku stood up angrily, his face darkened at the veiled slight while Cornelia watched the exchange with a hint of amusement.

"Sit down, Baron," the Duke said testily, pointing the lit cigarette at him like an accusing finger, "I think you've done enough already to hurt this poor young girl. Why don't you sit down, prepare your tea, which cost me quite a lot, by the way, and listen to what I am going to say, before you start all acting like a white knight."

He then smiled at the pun he made before taking a long inhalation of the cigarette, stubbing it out with vicious aplomb in the tray his majordomo had placed down.

"Yuki here is my gift to you, Baron," Knight continued, "after your little display at the palace, the young girl was going to be dismissed or much worse. As soon as I heard what happened, I immediately pulled a few favors and had this young woman purchased. A tricky business, but as a Number, in the Britannian legal system, she is nothing more than property, suffice to say, all that mattered was the asking price."

He seemed to frown as he continued his line of statement, as if it was something he didn't approve of, but as fast as it was there, it quickly disappeared.

"But it appears Yuki is a smarter cookie than even the royal staff realized. So I'm having Keith here apprentice her in the ways of being a capable majordomo. When she is done, I'll give her to you."

"And why would you do that," Suzaku asked.

"Because it's a lesson," he replied dead serious, taking the coffee off the tray and sipping it.

"What you did at the ball was one of the worst things you could ever do," he made a motion towards Suzaku to work on his tea, which he begrudgingly did, it at least helped to keep his mind off of angrily retorting at this man who knew nothing about him.

"Britannian politics are just like Britannian thought. The strong feast upon the weak. To show weakness is to invite attack. What you did with Yuki was show weakness. You showed that you cared for Numbers."

"And that's a bad thing?"

"It can be. But now that I have removed her from the equation by placing her under my aegis, it is a weakness that they cannot exploit," the Duke responded, "but the gist of it is, yes, Baron Kururugi, they have perceived a weakness in you. What they will do is try and manipulate you to their aims based upon your emotions. "

"So what would you have me do," Suzaku asked, finishing the tea, but not taking a sip, not yet, "just stand idly by?"

"Well, we know you can't do that," the Duke noted, "so instead I think we should model you differently so to maximize your exposure, yet create a feigned weakness to draw your enemies in. Thankfully they cannot take their frustrations out on Area 11."

It took everything not for Suzaku to flinch at that statement.

_If you only knew Duke, if you only knew_, he thought.

"Baron, you have me interested, but I need to know, will you accept my help," the Duke asked catching Suzaku's mind wandering.

_Just what is his angle in all of this_, Suzaku thought as he looked at the Duke, _here he is, helping me, though for Cornelia's sake, and asking for almost nothing in return. Hell, to have a duke serve under a baron would be taken as an insult for the duke, yet here he is, offering his serves without a singular care._

"I need to know before I answer that question, what are you getting out of this?"

He sipped his coffee again setting it down, folding his hands together and tapping his thumbs together in contemplation.

"Let me give you a bit of a story about myself. I have the unpleasant luxury of being born to the Duke of New Haven, one of the oldest and most prestigious dukedoms in Britannia. My lineage includes the likes of an ancestor who enticed Franklin over to Britannia with the promise of nobility. To be born into this position is to literally have the path set before me for my entire life."

He gave a wan smile.

"Fortunately, as far as plans go, I am a bit of a rebel. I disagree with hereditary nobility. Too many times in history has my family almost brought to ruin by unqualified individuals. In fact, if it wasn't for my father, New Haven would have been absorbed by another noble family. I believe in a man's merit, not his birth. Not a very popular position to take. Only reason Nelly even tolerates my presence, other than my dashing good looks," this brought a snort, "is because I have a wicked mind. I might be heretical in my thinking, but I have a good sense of people that I hire or promote. It is why my duchy is improving, much to the chagrin of my father's former retainers, because the people I have put in place are people I know can do the job, whether by noble birth or not."

_He's a reformist_, Suzaku realized in shock. He had heard that there was a small element within the Britannian nobility that held beliefs that ran counter to Britannian standard. Instead of challenging the prevailing thought, they merely used to powers of nobility to administrate their areas in their own way. As long as they did nothing to anger the Emperor, they were left relatively alone. Cornelia, of all people, should treat this man as a leper, yet she wasn't. In fact, he glanced over at her, she seemed to be relishing this judging by the small smile on her face as she sipped her own coffee.

"What do I get out of this you ask? I get out of here," he motioned around the room, "my father's former and my new retainers pulled some strings that I wasn't aware of to get me stationed here. If it wasn't for them, I would be involved in the planning phases of the next series of operations against the European Union. I not only get back on to the field, but I also get the added benefit of causing some chaos for the other nobles who are secretly waiting to slip a knife in your back when you least expect it. So in a way, you win by getting the political and physical support, and I win by getting some amusement and out of this cage."

Suzaku stared at him for a few moments, his mind considering the offer before him.

_As much as I want to ignore what he is saying, he has a point. Lelouch once described his family and the nobles as jackals ready to feast on one another. I'm a soldier, not a politician, I can't fight the enemy in front of me and behind me at the same time._

"For now, I'll accept your offer," Suzaku finally said, taking a sip of the tea, and to his shock, he recognized the distinctive flavor as shincha, the first picked tea of the season. It had been years since he had actual real shincha. Because of the conquest of Area 11, shincha production was strictly controlled and what amount was produced was automatically taken by the Britannians. And even then, it was incredibly rare in noble circles. To have it here, being served to him, was almost too good to be true.

"I thought you would like it," the Duke said with a small smile, "my duchy is actually a leading buyer of the shincha crop. Damn intellectuals at the Yale Institute have acquired a taste for the stuff after I turned over the deanship to a friend of mine," he shrugged, "I will admit, I do enjoy it from time to time. But my poison of choice is chocolate. Now, I have two rules, and two rules only that must be followed to the letter, you violate them, I don't want anything to do with the backlash."

"Alright," Suzaku replied, taking another sip as his eyes slid shut at the taste and aroma of the tea.

"First, when I advise to do something, do it. Don't question, just do it. I have a lot more experience playing the game than you do and I know what I'm doing. You can ask me after the fact what the purpose is for, but don't hesitate."

Suzaku bristled at the brusqueness of the tone, but he slowly nodded.

"And the second?"

"Don't FUCK with Schneizel. Whatever you do, whatever fight you pick, please, for the love of whatever god you worship, don't pick one with Schneizel."

"And why is that?"

"Well, there's a caveat to that," the Duke admitted, glancing over at Cornelia, "if Nelly here is interested in becoming Empress..."

"No."

"Very well then. I am not going to pick a fight with the man who will become Emperor when Chuckles keels over," this earned a frown from both Cornelia and Suzaku, "it is wise not to have a man who will have the power to wipe you off the face of the Earth hold a grudge against you. And frankly, Snakezel creeps me out. I don't like the way he looks at you like you are his next meal, and I really do not like the fact that he schemes more than I do. So, Suzaku, as long as you don't violate my two rules, I will support you to the best of my abilities. You violate them, I will not protect you from the blowback."

"Understood," Suzaku responded.

"Very well then, let's enjoy those cookies," the Duke replied with a smile, as he looked down at the cookies, the smile disappeared.

It was then that Suzaku realized why the smile was gone. Because on the tray of cookies, it was quite obvious that two were missing.

"Lee," Knight asked, glancing over his shoulder towards his majordomo.

"Lee, sir."

Outside the room, sitting at the desk, Sir Lee Swann was finishing licking his fingers off as he opened his book back up, a satisfied smirk on his face.

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On charts it was called Christmas Island, once a territory of the Australia Republic, after the Second Pacific War it had been abandoned by the Australians in order to consolidate its forces to better defend the mainland.

As such all that was left was the dilapidated ruins of a military base and settlement. So there were no witnesses as the Black Knight's submarine surfaced off the coastline.

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It was a small affair, but then again, C.C. would have found it humorous that they were even going to the trouble of dealing with her final internment. But for Lelouch is was more of something he felt compelled to do, C.C. had lived for several hundred years all alone without the hope of dying and now that she had died…

That was why Lelouch had chosen Christmas Island for C.C.'s final resting place. It was a relatively quiet yet beautiful locale where the probability of human interference at a low amount.

But it wasn't enough, even Lelouch knew the danger of leaving her body anywhere, even with the low probability of humans setting foot on the island. That was why he was sending her off in the most poetic of ways, complete with a beautiful view of the ocean.

He had enlisted Kallen's help for this, having her deploy the Guren onto the island and help gather the necessary materials for what he had planned, which was now at hand as he stood before funeral pyre Kallen and himself had set up, the Guren on a knee with himself and Kallen in front of the pyre where C.C. lay, a serene expression on her face.

There was really no words that could be said, no long eulogies, no shared memories between Kallen and Lelouch in regards to C.C., all the memories were of Lelouch's and he wasn't willing to share. All that they shared was the acknowledgement in the job that needed to be done.

Yet now as the time as darkness was brooking the edges, as Lelouch had a small smile that played at his lips.

_You always claimed you were a witch, C.C. I wonder what you would think about this sendoff._

He then clicked a remote detonator, a whoosh the resultant action as the accelerants that were doused over the pyre were ignited, engulfing the body of C.C. in flames as it reached up into the heavens.

It was much like closing a chapter in his life, and no matter how much Lelouch wanted to admit it, he would miss the quirky yet confident air the witch carried whenever she was around him, that all-knowing smirk that she always had plastered on her face that infuriated him to no end. Yes, he would definitely miss that damnable witch.

But now he had to move forward, if C.C. was the Witch of Geass, then he must be the Warlock of Geass, but unlike her purpose to die, he had a purpose, and he could not deviate anymore.

He glanced over to where Kallen was leaned up against the monstrous claw of the Guren quietly watching the flames, even as she wrapped her arms around her to keep the cool air away from biting into her.

He was the Warlock, and she was his Herald, and the Black Knights were his legion. He would work from here now, and he would not fail like he had previously. For a world of peace for Nunnally, he will become the Devil himself in order to succeed.

He spun around and headed towards Kallen, whose eyes locked with his for a moment.

He wondered what she was thinking behind those cerulean eyes. What did she think of what he was doing now? What did she think of the path he was about to lead them on? What did she think of him?

He snorted, that last thought was an illogical thought to be concerned to. She was his accomplice and equal. What she thought of him was irrelevant as long as she remained loyal and supported his goals.

The eye contact broken, he got to settling onto the shoulder of the Guren as it powered up, rising to its full height.

Lelouch vi Britannia cast one last glance at the burning pyre.

_Goodbye, Cera._

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Lelouch looked across the briefing table, fully unmasked now with the people who had joined him. While it wasn't to the amount of what he had projected yet, the inner circle had its necessary amount of members for the moment.

Of course, that only meant the principles were here in Rakshata and Tohdoh. But Tohdoh had wished to personally introduce Senba and Urabe into the group at the right time. Ohgi would be dealt with soon, and Kirihara was making preparations to shift the Houses of Kyoto out of Japan. Until then, the "Inner Council" would retain only the four of them.

"I wished to talk to the two of you before I make the announcement on the new direction we will be taking, but for this, Rakshata I wished to get your opinion on the matter before I fully commit."

Rakshata seemed to be back to her normal festive attitude, draped over the couch with her tobacco pipe spewing out the noxious aftereffects of her second favorite past time.

"Oh? And what would you like my opinion on?"

"The Maharajah."

"The Old Geezer? What do you want to know about him?"

"Would he be willing to rearm us?"

"With the Six Houses of Kyoto still intact, definitely," Rakshata responded, "he's always been a fan of future investments. You give me a couple of weeks and I can get us some new Knightmare Frame models and some upgrades to my baby."

"Good," Lelouch responded, in fact, that was more than good. If he could keep the Militarized Zone of India firmly in his camp then he could use it as his research and development hub as well as producer of Knightmare Frames for the future. But there was something else he hoped on.

"Does he have any contacts in the European Union?"

"We do have a technology exchange with the European Union. Though I am not so sure if it is a full diplomatic exchange, but it could be a back channel. Only the Old Geezer would know."

_Not exactly what I was hoping for, but something I can work with_, Lelouch thought.

"That decides that then, we will head for India then."

"Zero. Why are you so interested in the European Union?"

"It's not so much the European Union that interests me as much as what the EU holds that interests me."

"The Japanese refugees," Tohdoh asked.

"Yes. I have a feeling that the EU would enjoy having the Japanese taken off their hands and if we can render some military assistance to them and gain further favor, it is so much the better for us."

He let that settle in for the duo even as Kallen kept her watch at the door, she seemed to have a contemplative expression on her face.

"There is one final thing that we need to discuss. It is concerning myself. As soon as we enter Indian territory, we will run on the plan that Zero is dead. As such, because I cannot be seen due to the fact that I am a recognizable figure to the right eyes, I will not be leaving the submarine under any circumstances."

"But Zero, if we don't have you, then the chances are we will not have the force behind our actions that we would if you were to take center stage."

"Remember Tohdoh, to the world, Zero is dead. To anyone we run into, this incarnation of Zero is an imposter. Also, I doubt that the place we will be going to will have the necessary security to keep my continued survival a secret. So therefore, Kallen will be our leader for the time being."

"Me," Kallen asked, stunned at the announcement, "Zero, Lelouch, I'm not really leadership material, even with the guidance you have been giving me."

"Relax Kallen, I'm not to send you out there alone," he replied with a smirk at the discomfort Kallen was expressing, of course she wasn't fully ready, it was a credit to her that she didn't assume that she was ready based upon his promotion of her, "just because I am not there physically does not mean I won't be there with you. You have completed the project I asked of you Rakshata?"

"I have," she replied with a nod.

"Excellent. What we're going to cultivate a new image for Kallen, that as the heiress of Zero's legacy. I know this might not sit well with you Tohdoh, taking orders from Kouzuki, but they know you, they know what to expect from you. So you suddenly doing things what Zero would do would be too suspicious. However, all that's known about Kallen is that she's the pilot of the Guren. An unknown player is much more dangerous than a known player. So when you do meet the Maharajah, as I suspect he will want to know who's in command, we'll present her as the new commander."

Tohdoh looked at him for a long moment as if trying to read him for giving a slow uncomfortable nod.

"Relax Tohdoh, I am not trying to replace you, you will still are my second-in-command, however I am grooming Kallen to be my right hand so there will truly come a time in which she will command you, but not until I am satisfied that she is ready. And when that time comes, I will have a military operation that I think you will enjoy commanding quite a bit as a precursor to retaking Japan."

"And what would that be?"

"The Independence of India and the pacification of the Chinese Federation."

Tohdoh leaned back in his chair his mind racing.

To be offered such an assignment, was extraordinary. It was every Japanese officer's dream to regain the honor lost in the Humiliation at Lantau during the second Sino-Japanese War. To now be given it, to restore the honor lost as well as lay the ground for retaking of Japan.

_Zero might be replacing me, but the consolation prize is too much to turn down._

"You would give me my Holy Swords for the operation?"

"Of course, I wouldn't dream to deny any of you the honor of Operation Kuroshio."

_Black Tide, huh_, Tohdoh thought admiringly, _very appropriate_.

"If there is nothing else," Lelouch asked, "dismissed. Rakshata, send me the details on what you have for anti-Geass defenses when you can."

"Of course, Zero," Rakshata responded before she and Tohdoh ducked out, the door sliding shut behind them.

"You don't approve of this Kallen, do you?"

"I think you're vastly overestimating my skills Lelouch," she admitted frustrated taking the chance to sit on the table next to his helmet looking down on him, "I'm not the kind of person you're trying to make me out to be. I'm not Ohgi or Tohdoh, I'm not like Naoto. I'm just Kallen Kouzuki, Knightmare pilot and Zero's guard."

Lelouch placed his hand on Kallen's, strangling whatever further she was going to say, staring directly into her eyes, amethyst meeting cerulean.

"Spoken just like a natural leader. Kallen, sometimes the best commanders are those who do not seek the position, but are those who find themselves in it. If anything Kallen, you are grossly underestimating yourself."

She fought to keep the blush off her face as she turned away

"You're lying."

"I promised you I wouldn't lie," he didn't notice the hitched breath at that statement as he continued, "Since the first moment that I saw you in action in Shinjuku, I noted that you had a gift to adapt and overcome situations of inferiority in the blink of an eye, and you could analyze the tactical situation adequately as it was shown to you. While you say that my plans made you effective in the field, it's the simple fact that you have the mind to properly execute, modify and improve upon what I ordered of you."

Her head slowly turned back meeting his eyes in an expression that he found almost unreadable even as her face was flushed.

"And, even if you want to dismiss it, you understand what it is to create an identity, an alter ego. . . Kallen Stadtfeld, the sickly student of Ashford. How long you fooled all, including me."

"Tha-...Thank you Lelouch. I promise I won't let your trust in me down."

"I know you won't."

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Kaname Ohgi hissed through clenched teeth as he shifted in his bed as he leaned up against the wall.

He had been able to get let out of the medical bay to his quarters. But needless to say he was starting to regret the choice as he reached for his bottle of painkillers, opening the top and taking two. Downing then quickly he gulped at the dryness of the pills, feeling them settle into his stomach.

_Chigusa_, he thought as his hands curled into a ball, _why'd you do it?_

Before he could pursue the line of thought further a chime at the door sounded before the door opened to reveal Kallen.

"Hi. Care to let a friend in?"

He looked at her for a long moment before motioning to the chair.

"Grab a seat. Don't mind if I don't stand up to welcome you."

Kallen took the proffered seat, sitting with the back to her chest as she wrapped her arms around it.

"How are you," she asked, the concern evident from her body language and tone.

"About as good as one can be after a bullet to the stomach," he responded flippantly, causing her to even deeper, her arms wrapping a bit more tightly.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be. So, what brings you here?"

"I just wanted to talk."

"I thought you would be more focused on time with your boyfriend."

"He's not my boyfriend," she replied with a clipped angry tone.

"Coulda fooled me," Ohgi responded with a shrug and a weak smirk, letting his eyes slide shut for a moment, the throbbing pain not subdued by the painkillers. Oh to have just a few more right now.

"It's….complicated," she replied, averting her eyes from the man before her that she regarded as a friend and surrogate brother, it bothered to see him in pain. But it especially hurt her the way he seemed to assume her relationship with Lelouch, because even she didn't know what it was.

Ohgi snorted, "Complicated. Now there's a word to describe the situation that we're in."

"Why do you say that Ohgi?"

He shook his head, "No, it's nothing, don't worry about it. Ramblings from the drugs"

"No, tell me," she insisted, straightening in the chair and unwrapping her arms from the back.

"All of this," he made a motion around them, grinding his teeth as he so, the pain shooting through him, "we're back to square one. Except this time, we're worse off."

"We're not abandoning Japan, Ohgi. We will be back, we just need time to rearm and reorganize."

"We were prepared Kallen, we had it in the palm of our hands, and we let it slip from our grasp because he left us."

"His sister was kidnapped," Kallen gently reminded him while inwardly frowning. Why did she feel that Ohgi was simply evading the issue that was bothering him. She was absolutely sure he had been filled in on the exchange before the meeting, to continue on this line just seemed….off.

"We've lost family members and friends," Ohgi retorted, "yet we have kept on fighting in spite of that. His sister gets kidnapped and he abandons us."

"His sister is the very reason he's fighting."

An uneasy silence descended upon the two as the verbal duel seemed to die down for a moment as the two sides retreated to their respective sides.

_This isn't the Ohgi I know,_ Kallen thought, _he would take the setback and go with it. What happened to him? And who was that informant that was last seen with him before he was shot? _

That had been the only thing she had found out when she had asked around. During the battle an informant showed up at the Ashford Academy and demanded to see Ohgi, after that no one knew what happened, he had asked to be alone with the informant and the next thing anyone knew, he had been shot.

"I failed Naoto," Ohgi finally said, breaking her thoughts.

"What?"

"When I told you to follow him back at Tokyo, saying that he could realize Naoto's dream. If I had known who Zero was…"

Kallen shot up angrily, the chair surging forward towards Ohgi's bed, banging against it.

There was just one line to never cross, she believed in Zero, and for Ohgi to bring Naoto into this...

"And you think who he is makes a difference?! Lelouch has as much reason to hate Britannia as we do."

"He didn't lose his country!"

"He witnessed his mother and sister get gunned down," she angrily retorted, fighting to get herself under control, it wouldn't do any good to lose her cool, this was Ohgi, "then he got told he is dead by his own father and sent to Japan to be a political pawn. He witnessed firsthand the barbarity of his former homeland. So please, Ohgi, don't ever accuse him of not having a reason."

"But can you trust him," Ohgi asked plaintively, "if he bailed on us before for his sister, what makes you think, he won't again when his sister is in jeopardy?"

She paused, that was actually a good point. Lelouch had not told her anything concerning Nunnally and if he was compromised concerning her he would be a liability...

_But maybe that is why he's training you Kallen. Because he knows he needs someone who can fill for that deficiency._

"I believe in him, Ohgi. I know he won't let us down again."

"Even if he has to fight her in the future?"

"Especially so. Ohgi, just give him a chance to prove you wrong. I know, if you saw what he had planned, you would believe in him again."

A sigh escaped Ohgi's as he leaned his head against the wall.

It wasn't exactly like he had a choice. They had decided to retain Zero as the commander, despite the circumstances, which meant they still believed in him despite the circumstances.

But this was Kallen, Naoto's sister he had sworn to Naoto he would protect Kallen no matter what. He couldn't just abandon her to the charms of this Britannian Prince, he had no illusions that sooner or later, he would fail them again...or worse.

"Okay Kallen. But it is because I believe in you Kallen. If you think I can trust in, Zero, then I will."

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"The Duke of New Haven?"

"Yes," Kanon Maldini responded while reading off a clipboard, "two hours ago, the Baron and your sister arrived at the Royal Academy at Pendragon to seek an audience with the Duke. What they discussed is unknown, but fifteen minutes ago, the Baron contacted the Office of Personnel and requested the assignment of New Haven and his unit his Guard, since it was a request of the Knight of Eleven it was approved on the spot. Right after that, the Duke tendered his resignation to the Commandant, citing reassignment."

"How...unfortunate," Schneizel murmured into his cup of tea before sipping it.

Of course Kururugi was going to seek a Guard; it was only natural for a noble Knight of the Round to seek one out. Of course, there was no one in Britannia who would dare touch someone like Suzaku, he was toxic.

Well, almost everyone, he had accrued a list of guards for the Baron that would tolerate him...and spy on him. At the same time he would have gotten Kururugi indebted to him.

But this, this was unforeseen; it was a small setback, but an annoying one. New Haven played the Britannian nobility game almost as well as himself. That was when he chose to get involved, more often than not he chose to sit quietly in his camp doing nothing but watching, and that was the most worrying. Because despite Schneizel's information network, there were times when there were lapses in the coverage to what he had no idea what the Duke was doing.

But if that wasn't enough, New Haven also knew how to cultivate and teach prospective nobles for his irritating reformists. His father wrote off the reformists as a quiet clique of bored nobles dabbling in an esoteric hobby.

But he wasn't so sure. Too many whispers, too many unknowns, that was why when some of the Duke's father's retainers had approached him begging him to remove the Duke from the battlefields of North Africa, he had taken advantage of the situation to get him transferred to the Academy.

"Any news of the servant?"

"The Duke purchased her off the royal family last night before the reception has ended."

He knew he would be sought out, Schneizel thought irritably, so he trussed up the servant as a gift to Kururugi.

That was worrisome when combined with the more disturbing facet to this development was his sister's involvement with Kururugi. Cornelia was an avowed elitist who believed in the superiority of royal and noble blood over commoners and especially numbers. This development was an unknown variable he hadn't taken into account. And unknown variables were becoming increasingly dangerous as the time was nearing.

Privately, he wished Cornelia had perished in the bombardment; it would be preferable to this new headache.

Speaking of headaches...

"What's the latest casualty report from Tokyo?"

"The latest estimates are leveling off, Schneizel, but they are bad enough. We're looking at around 67,000 dead. The House of Lords requests your appearance soon to discuss the incident."

A sound tactical decision questioned by nobles, how utterly frivolous. The military lauded it, but some of the nobles and commoners were questioning the decision, squeamish to the thought of Britannian blood being spilled by their fellow Britannians.

"Inform Lord Hester, I will present myself before the Lords tomorrow in the afternoon to field their questions."

"And Baron Kururugi?"

"We'll watch him for now. Father wants to send him to assist in the EU Theater; I won't be the one to trifle in his decisions on this. But I would like to know what Cornelia is up to, playing against me."

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It had been less than three hours since he had accepted the Duke of New Haven and already Suzaku was beginning to question the intelligence of his decision as the very expensive sports car he was currently riding shotgun in hurtling down the Pendragon M1 in midday traffic weaving in and out of near-certain death multiple times. His knuckles white from the terror as he held on to whatever for dear life.

He was used to the life-and-death of piloting the Lancelot, but this was something else. First he wasn't the driver and second, this was not a Knightmare frame.

And through this entire thing, his eyes darted back to Lee Swann for a moment, the Duke's second was acting as if this was normal, quietly munching on something that looked a lot like pocky. How he wasn't chucking out everything he hadn't eaten was almost saintly in His estimation.

"Call Cerise," the Duke's voice snapped him back to reality as the onboard computer on the computer immediately began dialing.

The dialing suddenly stopped signifying connection as a woman's voice filled the car.

"Hello?"

Suzaku looked again at his driver and new guardian who wore a wide grin on his face, his hair unbound now. This was the seventh woman he had called so far on their trip.

"Lady Alistair, my darling, it is your lovely knight."

A giggle sounded on the speakers.

"Oh Al, I'm having tea with my mom and her friends, what do you need?"

"I was wondering if you would like to bring your prim and proper bottom down to my villa tonight and celebrate with the rest of the girls a one-night-only everything-must-go party with your favorite Duke?"

"You're leaving?"

"Got reassigned, going to sharing a bit of my love with the ladies of the EU, even sweep a few of them away from their husbands."

This brought a laugh from the woman on the other end.

"I don't know Al; I have a date with my boyfriend."

"Oh come on Ally, it'll be the last party I throw for a good while. It just won't be the same without you. Especially when I decide to tap into the single malt scotch I saw you eyeing."

"Seriously," she asked, suddenly the playfulness gone.

"As a change of venue, you can drink the shots right off me this time, scotch shots a la Knight" he said mischievously, causing Suzaku to cringe.

_Is he implying what I think he is?_

"Oh god," she replied flustered, "you drive a hard bargain."

"Not the only thing hard I drive."

"God Al, why are you doing this to me," she replied a little breathlessly, "but I can't turn down a party invitation like that."

"Excellent, see you at eight my lady, and remember to bring your evening best."

"Oh I will, My Lord," she replied with a laugh, "you just better bring your A game."

"When haven't I, My Lady," he responded with his own laugh, "til tonight."

"Til tonight."

The Duke then cut the line as he darted the car into an exit and hit the accelerator, the engine growling in response as it shot down the incline.

"She was always my favorite," he said with a smile as he turned the car, slowing it down from the insane speeds he had been maintaining since leaving the Academy. He then glanced over at Suzaku's look of incredulity.

"What?"

"What else haven't you told me yet," Suzaku asked testily, "you keep a secret chamber underneath your villa in which you sacrifice children to a pagan god?"

"I do have a secret chamber….but it isn't for sacrificing children," Knight replied nonchalantly, Lee chuckling in the back as he unwrapped another of his treats.

"This isn't a joke, Duke," Suzaku replied testily, "I agreed to have you as my guard and an advisor, but if you're going to be a liability with your lifestyle and the people you keep around you, then we can stop right now and I'll look for someone else."

Suddenly Suzaku had to brace himself as the Duke swerved onto the side of the road, hitting on the brakes as the car came to a stop, Lee crying as his treats flew all over the back, the chocolate sticks scattering all over the expensive upholstery and carpet.

"Hey –"

"Shut it Lee," the Duke snapped, glancing at Suzaku once, then opening the door and getting himself out.

"Step outside, Baron," he finally said, draping his arms over the roof, allowing his head to still peer inside.

Suzaku glanced around, noting that they were now outside of Pendragon, a bit of uncertainty clouding him. Taking one more look at the Duke who had stepped away from the car, looking more irritated than angry. It was highly unlikely he would do anything untoward to him, even with the location, especially at the risk of angering Cornelia.

He opened the door and stepped out, slamming the door shut behind him as he walked forward to where the Duke was ahead of the car, he then came to a stop as the Duke whirled around on him.

"Let me explain something to you, Kururugi. You don't need to worry about the things I involve myself in," as he said this he shook his finger at Suzaku, "unlike you, I know exactly what I am doing. Lady Alistair, the woman I was talking to just a few moments ago? She is the youngest daughter of the CEO of Alban Industries, which just so happens to be the company that I run all of my Knightmare Frame customizations through. Because she is the youngest of FOUR daughters, she has almost zero chance of marrying upwards into a more noble family, yet here I am cultivating a relationship with her, which grants me the opportunity to receive discounts and preferable treatment, because I happen to be the highest-ranked noble that any of his daughters are courting. It is the same thing with the other six women I happen to be courting in Pendragon."

He then sighed, as if shaking his head in dismay at his outburst.

"And before you start accusing me of being a heartless bastard taking advantage of those poor women and their connections, I will admit to you here and now, that despite all of this, I actually care for those girls. If I could, I would take care of each and every one of them myself. But I don't have that luxury, only the Emperor and his family do by law. So I have to take advantage of my station and use them to further my own agenda and that of my duchy. I hate it, but that is my responsibility, just as my responsibility now is to serve you. But don't let that cloud your judgment in that you can control me or override my decisions, I will make them as I see fit, but I will defer to you when the decisions have a legitimate impact upon your or your barony."

This was an entirely different side to the Duke than Suzaku had seen so far, a rather odd mixture of cold calculation, anger, and regret. It was like the Duke hated himself for what he was doing, but did it anyways. It added a complexity to him that caused him to wonder if there was even more to him.

Yet at the same time, he could see the logic of his statement. He was using Britannia in his own way for his own aims. Freeing Japan to be an autonomous protectorate of Britannia was his end goal, and no matter who he had to use, even Cornelia in spite of everything she had done for him, he would achieve this goal.

"Fine," he said with a sigh, "it's not like I can tell you what you can and cannot do."

"Actually you can," the Duke said with a smile, "as the Knight of the Round you can countermand my actions as your guard."

"But I won't," Suzaku answered, "as long as you don't put me at risk or the rest of my guards, I will let you continue as is. You have more experience at this, and Cornelia told me to defer to you on judgment. But when we deploy, I would like for you to refrain from any of this."

"Fair enough. Now," he held up his arm and glanced at his watch, "that we are ten minutes behind schedule thanks to our little chat; I think we need to double-time it so that Earl Asplund doesn't get too antsy and meet the team before we get there"

"You know Lloyd?"

"I've run into him a few times, not enough to say that I really know him, but I know his history."

It was then that the Duke turned and headed towards the car before stopping.

"Oh, and one more than, Lord Kururugi. Please refrain from calling me Duke or New Haven. I would prefer not to have such a weighty title when I have to work closely with you. So just call me Al, Alexander, or Knight, I'll answer to any of those."

"Then call me Suzaku."

"As you wish."

"Knight. Can I ask why you are doing this? All of this? You could have easily turned it down."

A long pause ensued as the Duke kept his back to him, and then he kept walking.

"One of these days, I'll answer you, but not now," he responded, opening the door to the car.

"Lee, you better have cleaned up that damn mess."

"C'mon Al, you should have warned me that you were going to slam on the brakes," Lee's plaintive voice sounded out from the car.

"And you shouldn't be eating in my car. You know how the cleaners hate when you eat that pocky shit in the car."

Suzaku muted out the rest of the conversation as he walked back to the car.

_What is the Duke hiding from me? So far he's been easy and forthcoming in every single thing. Why is he clamming up now? What isn't he sharing with me? I'll have to ask Cornelia later if she knows, I can't let secrets be a liability with this man, he might seem to be loyal to Cornelia, but he is not loyal to me. _

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"Cornelia."

"Your Majesty," Cornelia said, coming to attention at the end of the table where her father, the Emperor of the Holy Britannian order, sat eating his meal, not looking up from it.

"You demanded to see me," he said conversationally in between bites, "well here I am. What do you want?"

She was surprised at the swiftness of her father giving her audience; she had only asked for it a short time ago. She had figured that it would be several days before he even deigned her with a response, allowing her to lick her wounds and prepare. Instead now here she was.

"Your Majesty….Father," she searched his face for any reaction to the response but found none as he continued to eat, a small mental sigh allowing her to gather herself. It took a lot of weight off her chest that he favorably responded to it.

"I requested to seek an audience in concern to the decision to disband my army group," she declared, her eyes locked onto her father, "I wish for you to reconsider Schneizel's decision, Father."

"And why should I do that," he asked, leaning back in his chair, his attention now focused solely upon Cornelia, steak forgotten.

"Because they are my men. I trained them myself and they have been with me throughout all of my campaigns, they have shared in my successes and my failures and to have them torn apart and placed in other units would be a travesty to their skills and accomplishments."

"You mean your skills and accomplishment," the Emperor rumbled, "sentiment…such a foolish notion. I will not override Schneizel's decision to disband your army. Schneizel plans to use your army to shore up his personnel for the European Union campaign with experienced pilots and officers, and since if I had left you with that army to rebuild, they would be deprived of that."

Cornelia bowed her head, biting back an angry retort, even as a piece of her was torn away. The very army that had been almost like a part of her family was being ripped away from her without her ability to even defend them.

"You don't agree, Cornelia?"

"No, Your Majesty," she replied through clenched teeth, "but I obey."

"Good," he then went back to slicing up the steak, taking a large piece of it away thanks to his ministrations, consuming it before her before dabbing his lips with a napkin.

"Now, I will allow you to retain your Glaston Knights, and I will allow you the ability to form yourself a new army group. But that is not the purpose of this chat. I had originally planned to summon you for a different reason."

"Reason?"

"It is concerning the identity of Zero being that of my son."

Cornelia froze, her eyes widening almost imperceptibly.

_How does he know?! I haven't even posted the after-action reports and I know Kururugi hasn't either, so how!_

"Treason within the royal family is unacceptable," he continued menacingly, "I did not end the Emblem of Blood only for my children to take arms against the Imperial family again. You and Kururugi are to keep the identity of Zero secret or you will be dealt with, do I make myself clear?"

She nodded.

"But this creates a situation for me, in regards to the discovery of my daughter. She is of no use to me, yet thanks to Schneizel, I must make an exception for her."

He tapped his fingers irritably looking at Cornelia, even as she understood the hidden meaning in his words. He was placing a threat to Nunnally before her in that if the identity of Zero was ever revealed, she would be punished in more than just one way. Nunnally was more than likely still coping with the news of Lelouch's demise, but she was more than likely aware that Zero was Lelouch. He must be aware of her feelings for Nunnally as children and was using those against her.

In spite of everything, the world was still being unbearably cruel to Nunnally, now taking away those that loved and cared for her and now that all that was left of the people that had even spent time with her as a child was her.

"Your Majesty, may I request taking over for her guardianship?"

"Oh? You have shown an interest in forming your Army, now you want to take care of Princess Nunnally?"

"It will take months until my Army is formed and trained, Father. During that time, I can take care of Princess Nunnally and provide you with a reason as to how she can be useful."

Narrowed eyes were her only response as the Emperor seemed to want to pierce through her with his gaze and figure out what she was thinking behind that guise.

_You may think that I'm planning something Father,_ she thought caustically, _but I am more concerned for Nunnally's well-being now that she is alive than you would believe. I won't let Nunnally suffer any more because of the choices she had no control over._

"Very well," he finally said, "She is currently at the Aries Villa. You may leave now."

"Thank you, Your Majesty," Cornelia replied with a bow as the Emperor went back to eating taking her leave.

Yet at the same time, she couldn't help but feel irritation at the way her father seemed more interested in the food before him than in anything she said, only choosing to respond when he felt like it.

It was eye-opening, now that she thought about it, but never in her life could she remember the Emperor being truly invested in anything before him. He always seemed to give off an air of mild annoyance or disinterest in just about everything.

But that wasn't the focus right now, as Guilford slid in behind her as she exited through the dining room door, she needed to see to Nunnally.

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"The hell is this," Cornelia demanded, looking through front windshield past her drive at the massive crowd that was gathered in front of the front gates of the villa, "Guilford, get me the guard post."

Guilford, ever dutiful, did just that as he pulled out his mobile and began barking out commands, quickly getting in contact with whoever was in the guard post.

"Princess, I have a Sergeant Hampton," Guilford said, handing her the mobile.

She then pulled it up to her ear.

"Sergeant Hampton, what is the crowd that I am seeing in front of Aries Villa?"

"Ma'am," the dutiful response came, not a hint of hesitation or fear in his tone, "the media and mourners have been camped outside of the Aries Villa since the announcement of the Princess's survival."

"And why haven't they been dispersed already," she demanded acidly, "you're in charge of the Princess's protection."

"I have tried ma'am, but I have only a skeleton staff and we don't have the ability to do so. We are hard-pressed keeping them from getting in and not much else."

Cornelia reached up to massage her temple, the headache already mounting. The lack of a suitable guard, the security concerns from this massive group gathering. Even if there weren't any of the Elevens in the crowd, there was a possibility that the people that killed Empress Marianne could make an attempt upon Nunnally now that she was here.

"Sergeant Hampton, we're coming in to see the Princess. I suggest you have your people ready. As to you being short-staffed, I will have a solution to that when I get there. From this moment on, I am your commander."

"Yes, Your Highness," he replied, just before she shut the mobile off.

"Driver, get us into the Villa," she said, before refocusing on Guilford, a wicked idea occurring to her.

"Guilford, you said the Glaston Knights landed in Pendragon a few hours ago. Do they have their Knightmare Frames?"

"Yes, Your Highness."

The car slowed down as they approached the crowd, the crowd becoming aware of the car as they turned around, the media already flashing their cameras and shouting questions towards the car, knowing only that whoever was in it was important. Cornelia silently thanks Guilford for having tinted reflective windows installed on the car.

Cornelia tuned them out as she glanced around the car as it kept slowly moving.

"Tell them to sortie to the Aries Villa with orders to disperse the crowd, non-violently of course," she said with almost a predatory smile. For her, this was almost heaven-sent considering all of the hell she had dealt with over the years with the media, "I'll leave you in charge of the defensive arrangements while I meet with Nunnally. Take the guards from the Belial Palace."

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It had taken almost a half an hour since when they had approached the crowd and when they had been able to get into the Aries Villa, and throughout the entire affair she could not prevent her disgust from breaking over on the staff.

To say that the staff of the Aries Villa was substandard would be a description done out of kindness. In the short time she had reviewed over the staff she couldn't help but notice the slovenly way they carried themselves, as if they didn't need to worry about because their charge was blind. It had taken every effort to not fly into a fit over it.

Instead she merely noted it dispassionately and made sure to fix everything as soon as she had the chance. If she had to raid her own staff, then so be it.

But that was secondary, the primary focus here was the inhabitant in which they were charged to care for and protect, and she was now charged as her guardian.

According to the maids that tended to her Nunnally had refused to leave the room, Lelouch's former room, under almost any circumstances other than the essentials. She had demanded to be served her food which she hardly ate.

She quietly opened the door to the room, taking in its contents.

It obviously had hastily been pressed into service judging by the arrangement of the room; obviously it had been undraped and arranged for its new master.

"Is someone there," a faint raw voice called out; bring Cornelia out of her reverie as she focused on the source of the query.

There sitting in the shadows of the window in a powered chair was Nunnally vi Britannia, who sniffled as she wiped her face of shed tears.

Almost immediately Cornelia was taken in by how frail she looked, like a hatchling in its nest.

"Just please," she cried, her voice cracking as she pleaded, "I just want to be left alone."

Cornelia quietly approached the young vi Britannia as she fiddled with her controls, turning the chair fully to face her just as she lowered herself to a knee, placing her hand over her grieving half-sister's.

"Hi Nunnally," she said softly as the other hand closed over hers as Nunnally sniffed again, but fought to straighten herself.

"Sister Cornelia," she half-asked, half-stated.

"I came as soon as I -"

She didn't get further as those spindly arms wrapped themselves around her as Nunnally started crying again.

"Nelly," the distress so evident in her tone, "Lelouch..." She couldn't finish as she choked up again.

"I know," she said, wrapping her arms around her, "that's why I'm here."

Yet even as she felt a few tears fall down her face Nunnally dug her head into her breast, she couldn't help but curse Lelouch for what he had done to Nunnally, making her suffer more for his actions.

_One day, Lelouch_, she pledged_, I will find out why you did this. Why you hid out for so long and why you waged rebellion against your own family?_

But for now, she would focus on mending the heart of a young girl who had lost everything.

* * *

Author's Note: Welp, three days late on my schedule, I had hoped to have it ready for the weekend. But as they say about best-laid plans never surviving the first shot, but in this case Finals week.

Anyways, for those of you out there reading it, don't be afraid to ask questions and pm me about anything. I actually make it a point to respond to questions and criticisms because I enjoy the exchanges.

So I now have the next two weeks off. In that time I'm going to do my best to try and get out a chapter every five days or so until mid January.

On a final note, the reason I chose the title of this chapter as Luft is because of the chess move designed to give the King air in which to avoid a mate. In this case, on both sides, Luft is being achieved in order to prevent the King (in this case Suzaku and Lelouch) from being put into check and mate.

I hope you enjoyed the chapter and look forward to the next one soon.


	7. Mundus Vult Decipi, Ergo Decipiatur

Aria Six

**Mundus Vult Decipi, Ergo Decipiatur**

"And they finally arrive," Lloyd Asplund announced with annoyance as Suzaku. The Duke and his subordinate exited the car, "and here I thought you were punishing me with this heat."

"Lloyd, behave," Cecile replied, glancing over the group before extending a hand, "allow me to introduce ourselves, my colleague currently complaining about the heat is Earl Asplund and I'm-"

"Cecile Croomy," the Duke finished for her, taking the hand up and brushing his lips over it, causing Cecile to blush, "your thesis paper on compressed energy propulsion is causing quite a rave over at the Yale Institute. If you have the time later, I'd love to pick your mind on the details in private."

Suzaku could only frown deeply, biting off any type of input. As my h as he wanted to keep this man from trying to charm Cecile, he stayed himself because of the previous exchange.

"Uh huh," Lloyd grunted, adjusting his glasses, "I'm surprised Suzaku that you would work with the Sala-"

"Earl Asplund, I see you still haven't learned the art of restraint, I would prefer it if you would be mindful of your words."

Suzaku looked at Knight who still maintained the charm he had just shown Cecile even as he leveled that poorly veiled warning. Now he was convinced that there was something that the Duke was hiding that much was obvious by how Lloyd wilted slightly.

He would need to ask Lloyd about this later.

"Now then, let's go inside and meet the rest of the team," the Duke stated, smile plastered on his face, "if you would follow me. Sirs...Madame."

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Almost immediately as he entered the villa, Suzaku was struck by how it seemed to be more of a palatial bachelor's pad with everything to it, than just a villa. But it was as he came to the living area that he tried to keep his expression neutral as Swann peeled off and headed off in the direction of where a fully stocked bar sat.

The room was almost big enough to fit the Lancelot in, and it was decked in all the same with furniture and other forms of entertainment and equipment that easily outstripped any type of wages he could ever earn in his lifetime.

Yet even as he spotted the massive entertainment system in which someone sat in front of watching the Britannian 24-hour sports news network, BESPN, playing a pair of talking heads yelling back and forth about a coach in the news, before a ding sounded caused them to move to the next subject, he spied that instead of a wall was simply a glass wall that led out to an indoor pool with a solarium.

The Duke walked up to the man whose back was still to them, bringing his hand down on his right shoulder, causing him to jump.

"Bang, you're dead."

"Jesus Al, I told you-," as he spun around, cutting himself off as he realized they were not alone and allowing Suzaku to get a measure of the man.

He looked around the Duke's age, his short brown hair drawn back in a short series of spikes that were permed upwards. But the most striking features was the Japanese features the man had.

"Baron Suzaku Kururugi, Knight of Eleven, Sir Yoshi Miyazaki, and 'fore you get any ideas, he's a first generation Britannian."

"Pleasure," Miyazaki said, looking up and down Kururugi, "so this is what you were talking about last night Al?"

"Can't have you wasting away watching your sports junk while leeching off me between operations," Knight responded.

"Right. And the others?"

Suzaku quietly watched the body language of Yoshi getting a read of him as Lloyd and Cecile were introduced. Unlike the Duke he seemed almost diametrically opposite, reserved, distant, and studious, as if everything should be taken in measure.

If anything, out of the three, Miyazaki fit into Suzaku's stereotype of a professional Knightmare pilot. Which was a rather funny concept, when he thought of it. The idea of normality with a storm of absurdity.

"If you're looking for Vic, she's over by the pool, doing the usual."

"Good, she's either going to drown me or want to have my children with this news," he added a shrug to the smile as Yoshi frowned.

"You know she doesn't like that joke, Al."

"Eh, sue me. Baron, Earl, Miss Croomy, if you will follow me, I will introduce you to the fourth member of my team."

It was then he led them to the glass wall, the door to the wall sliding open and allowing them into the pool area. Immediately, the blast of hot humid air hit them with such a force that Suzaku could feel the sweat dotting his temples in automatic response.

Yet even as he was assailed by the humid air his eyes were drawn to the solitary figure that was floating on a pool chair in the middle of the expanse of water.

The first thing that struck his eye of this solitary figure was the relatively reserved single-piece black swimsuit that ran counter to current Britannian fashion wonts in skimpy swimwear. The other was, other than the sunglasses that served to cover her eye and the definitely non-regulation length curtain of black hair that flowed over the back of the chair and into the water spreading and floating behind her like the tentacles of a jellyfish.

"Vic," the Duke called out to no response, "Vic!"

Still no response the Duke started muttering to himself going over to a table and emptying his pockets of everything and shedding his gloves, jacket, shoes, and socks onto the chair.

"Give me a moment."

Without giving them the time to say anything he made a running dive into the water and going under aimed straight at the unaware woman.

With a yelp, she was thrown into the water as the chair was overturned. Knight coming up a moment later in laughter as the woman promptly followed, a small look of amusement on her face, before it disappeared as she spied the gathering, as if the look was for the Duke and the Duke alone.

Reaching up to her ear it looked like she pulled something out of it as he swam up beside her and whispered some words into her ear.

She said nothing, if anything; she looked even more grim as the Duke turned and swam towards them, before she trailed after him.

The Duke was the first to exit the water, before he turned around and offered the woman a hand up. She took it, allowing him to guide her to feet, the water sloughing off her, allowing Suzaku to get a firsthand look at her rather svelte figure, the eyes still hidden behind the sunglasses as she sized him up in return, taking the offered towel to wrap herself up, adjusting now what was obviously an earbud up underneath her ear to a small barrette wrapped around the back of her neck, making it look like an earring.

"Baron Suzaku Kururugi, Baroness Victoria Harrington, the fourth member of our team, and our resident Knightmare monkey."

She gave a wintry smile as she extended her hand at the same time taking off her sunglasses.

Even as the sunglasses came off, Suzaku felt an uncharacteristic wave of discomfort roll over him as he beheld a chaotic clash of hazel and green. Even so he took the offered hand shaking it.

She seemed to sense it as well as she placed the sunglasses back on, Suzaku literally tasting the irritation as she bristled, withdrawing her hand.

"Never seen heterochromia iridum before, Baron," she asked, an edge to the silk of her voice.

"No, I apologize, it took me off-guard. You have beautiful eyes," Suzaku stuttered in response, feeling slightly intimidated by the frostiness this woman seemed to exude at will.

The wintry smile returned as she removed the sunglasses again, clipping them in the strap to her swimsuit, "and if you're Kururugi," she continued, picking up another towel and beginning to dry her hair down as she sat in a chair, the hair almost to the feet of it, "that makes your accompaniment Earl Asplund and Miss Croomy."

"And you would know us how," the Earl asked, adjusting his glasses a bit miffed as she finished wrapped the towel around her head.

"Professional courtesy," she replied, grabbing a tablet computer sitting on the table, and holding out a hand to the Duke, who placed something in it, she then slid it in, her eyes being lit up by the display of the tablet, "anyone affiliated with Camelot is considered the crème de la crème of engineers," she continued as she began typing something into it, "if it wasn't for my familial situation, I might have been admitted into the Royal Academy of Science," she said with a shrug.

"Uh huh," Lloyd responded.

"Well, it's nice to meet you," Cecile replied being her diplomatic best, even as Suzaku felt an irrational anger boil underneath at the way this woman seemed not in the least interested in himself or Lloyd and Cecile, but instead on her tablet.

"How soon," she blurted out of the blue.

"Excuse me," Suzaku asked.

"Two weeks, tops," Knight responded, "combat deployment after that."

"Resources," she asked.

"The usual. I already hinted the old bird that we might need a rush order. He's open to it."

"I take it you want it done from scratch."

"Of course."

"Hey," Suzaku blurted, angrily, "what are you talking about."

"You like causing me headaches Al, but I got my hands on Vincent specs last week, so I think I can whip up something. Just need the molds and the machinery," she continued unabated, ignoring Suzaku's demands.

"That's my girl."

"Okay, stop," Suzaku demanded angrily, causing both of them to look back towards him, "now, start from the top, what are you two even talking about?"

"Your guard units," Victoria replied, placing the tablet down on the table, "the Duke and I were discussing the outfitting of those units since we are going to be your guard. The issue is our unit is currently equipped with Gloucesters, not the Vincents which we will be equipped with while we are under your command. Since we have two weeks according to Al, I have to do a rush job to get both the customization and modifications done to suit each of our individual capabilities, since I am the mechanic for this unit as well. That is the gist of it, sir."

"I see," Suzaku responded, thankful for the professional answer. This entire time that he had been here he hadn't gotten any feeling of professionalism from any of his guard unit. Yoshi maybe, but Lee and the Duke were about as mature as a pair of frat boys. In fact, the more he saw of the guard unit, the less he even liked it. He could do with the Duke giving him pointers from time to time, but this...

He was both worried and irritated. The more he fell into the rabbit hole, the less he wished to be a part of it, the Duke was arguably a smart loose cannon with a playboy mentality, the only thing he got from Swann was that he was there for amusement and nothing else, Yoshi and Victoria he would probably take any day of the week into his guard unit. But two good apples did not replace the bad ones. What should he do in this case? He told both the Duke and Cornelia that he would follow through, but did that mean he would do so blindly when everything before him said he should go back on his word and go it alone, because alone was what he did best.

He was suddenly brought out of his contemplation by a pair of gloves landing on his feet and a small hitch of breath from Cecile, his eyes trailing down to the gloves there, before up to the point of origin of the offending article of clothing.

"And what was that," Suzaku asked, confused now, was there something he was missing in the semblance of what was being done.

"I challenge you to a duel for my honor," the Duke simply said, the playboy aura suddenly gone, replaced by something that seemed entirely foreign from the cocky, fast-mouthed, and smooth playboy Duke that had been before him only moments before, instead, this was the face and the eyes of a killer, a face much like the one he had looked in the mirror over the last four days.

"Duel? Honor? C'mon Knight, what is this?"

"Suzaku, he's serious," Lloyd warned him, "nobility have the ability to challenge other nobility to duels. It's a barbaric leftover from the old days that's rarely practiced anymore. But it exists and he has the ability to issue it, regardless of your rank."

Suzaku refocused upon Knight now, realizing the severity of the situation, the expression was equally serious on Victoria.

"Why?"

"Because it's obvious you don't believe in what my team can offer. I know exactly what you're thinking and I honestly take offense to it, since it's obvious Cornelia didn't fill you in on how capable we were. So, I challenge you to a duel, you can choose to accept it and the terms that come with it, or you can turn it down and deal with the shame of it, believe me, you will not like the latter part considering. But the choice is yours."

Could he turn it down, Suzaku thought even as he felt a surge of anger that he fought to control. It was obvious that Knight was eager to prove himself and to challenge him to something as archaic as a duel seemed completely like the immature and irresponsible personality that the Duke put on, but this was entirely different. If he turned it down, how would it result in his situation, would it improve or worsen it?

"What are your terms," he found himself asking.

"Since this is a matter of honor concerning Knightmares, I challenge you to Knightmare combat, your Lancelot and support staff against my team. The protocol will be agreed to upon the battlefield of my choice, for this case, the Aylmer Urban Combat Training Grounds. How does tomorrow morning sound?"

"And is it to the death," Suzaku asked, his voice hard, it was serious, judging by Knight's demeanor.

"Of course not, if anything, it will be a modified Edinburgh Protocol, first to yield during combat or be disabled. Of course, death is possible, but that would require a direct strike upon the cockpit block, and we are all professionals here."

"Fine then, in that case, you'll get your duel," he said with a resigned sigh.

"Good, we'll see you at noon then," the Duke said, making a dismissive motion towards Suzaku, "KJ should be back to show you out. I wish you good luck tomorrow."

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"Excuse me, Master Kururugi."

Suzaku turned around to the Duke's Majordomo who had called out to him as he was about to enter the vehicle that Lloyd and Cecile had come in. He quickly noted that the Yuki was quietly standing behind him.

"I beg your pardon, but considering the current situation in regards to the relationship between my Duke and yourself, I believe it would be appropriate if I turned Miss Yuki to your care. It appears my services in training her were wholly unneeded and she is ready."

Suzaku looked over the majordomo's shoulder again at the young woman who returned his look unflinchingly. His mind immediately wondered exactly what was the angle here, and if there was any angle. Everything so far had seemed deliberate the more he reflected upon it, yet that did not factor in this now.

"Thank you," Suzaku said giving a small nod, "if Miss Yuki feels that she should come with me, then that is her choice."

She paused for only a moment, before reaching up and untying her hair, letting it down, and handing the majordomo the tie.

"Thank you," she said to the Majordomo, before walking up to Suzaku.

"My services are now yours, My Lord."

Suzaku paused as he looked her straight in the eyes, feeling a level of revulsion at being referred to in such a subservient way by the young woman, but instead of voicing it, he merely nodded.

"Get in the car," he finally said, "we'll talk about arrangements when we arrive where I am staying."

"As you wish," she said, sliding past him and into the car, as Suzaku turned away and joined her.

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"Checkmate."

Kallen looked down at the pieces before her, where again in such a short time Lelouch had soundly defeated her.

They had been going at this for several hours now playing chess and not once had she been able to come close to defeat him, let alone put him under pressure.

"Let's go again," Lelouch simply said, grabbing the pieces and placing the board back in order.

But this all ended as Kallen angrily flipped the board over, causing the pieces to spill upon the floor.

"This is pointless," she said getting up and pacing back and forth, "what is even the point of this Lelouch. We've been doing this for hours now and all that I'm learning is that there is no way I can beat you."

Lelouch simple leaned back in his chair hands steepled as he smiled.

"Five hours."

"What?"

"You took five hours longer than I had expected to lose your cool. Commendable."

"I don't like being tested Lelouch," she stated with a huff, "especially when you promise to keep me in the loop on your schemes."

"And would you have kept playing if you knew?"

"...No."

"There you have it. So, would you like to hear what I have learned?"

"Fine," she responded in annoyance as she sat back down. Taking her permission he got up and started collecting the scattered pieces.

"There are two reasons why chess is referred to as the game of kings. The first is the rich history in which chess has existed over almost five thousand years, to where in the version that we play today earned its moniker from the fact that kings and queens up until the Age of Revolutions played it. Second, chess is considered a symbol of status within Britannia, those who are significantly skilled enough are deemed for greater things. But it also serves as an indicator of the personality of the player."

This only caused Kallen to roll her eyes in response, she personally viewed chess as the game of snobbish aristocrats and a symptom of Britannia's decadency. The fact that Lelouch was here talking about it like it was a life-or-death struggle when it was a game only reinforced it. She had heard rumors that Lelouch was involved in the underground gambling scene in chess games, this only served to reinforce her opinion that Lelouch was addicted to the game to the point of obsession.

"What I have learned is that in spite of your prodigious amount of patience, you have the capability to be insufferably stubborn when you get your mind stuck on it."

He then tossed the black queen up towards Kallen, stifling any protest on her lips as she caught it.

"In addition, to this, while you show a capacity for creative strategies, you are limited in that most of your actions are reactive or reflexive in nature. So that leaves us a lot to work on and not a lot of time to do it."

"And what do we have to work on?"

"Your abilities to predict and control the battlefield. I had hoped that chess might have been that gateway, but it appears that chess isn't enough in what I would like to see."

"Lelouch, I'm a capable enough Knightmare pilot," she stated after a brief pause, "your best. Maybe I don't need to be a commander as well. I will have my hands full protecting you and following your orders."

"Kallen, it doesn't matter the skill of the warrior, without a commander in which to fully utilize the warrior's skill, the warrior will fall in battle sooner or later. Kallen, I want, no I NEED you to be a commander as well."

"And why are you so insistent on it, you said we don't have a lot of time, what if I can't be taught in time?"

"I believe you will be taught in time, because I have no choice in the matter," Lelouch replied simply, gathering the rest of the pieces and placing them on the board, "Kallen. I need you to be groomed to your potential because Britannia has decided to bring my sister into this fight. That means, as soon as they become aware to my continued existence, they will use her against me."

"So I'm a just in case," she replied in bitterness, even though it confirmed her suspicions, it wasn't exactly what she had hoped would for.

Lelouch blinked at her tone, seemingly surprised at her response as if he had expected his truthfulness to elicit a different response.

"That still doesn't take away from you Kallen. You have that potential and you want my trust, here it is. If I didn't fully trust you with this I wouldn't be here making an effort. Regardless of what has forced my hand, sooner or later, as our forces grew larger, I would be forced to delegate responsibilities to others, people I trust. You are both my sword and shield Kallen, and if you are not finely honed, then we cannot succeed."

It made sense to Kallen the more she thought of it, yet this was Lelouch/Zero, he had encapsulated himself in the loneliness of his persona, it was highly possible he was bullshitting her.

"In your case, I think Tohdoh would be a better teacher in instilling what I am trying to teach you," he continued, "the next couple weeks are going to be tough on you Kallen, not only are we going to teach you, we need to master your Geass, and work on upgrading the Guren."

If there was one thing that caused her even any semblance of joy, it was the Guren itself. The Knightmare was like an extension of her, but it was even more than that, it WAS her. The idea of it being upgraded further after the fight with Suzaku left a warm feeling in the pit of her stomach.

A beep sounded, causing Lelouch to stop what he was doing to focus on his computer, opening it up.

"In fact, it appears Rakshata has already completed the schematics for it, as I expected, she always seemed to plan ahead."

He motioned Kallen to the computer, which she took the invitation looking over the schematics of the new Guren.

It was almost more than she could hope as her eyes drank in the details, noting each new addition to her beloved Knightmare. The excitement was almost too much to bear as she looked to Lelouch with look of joy.

"Please tell me it's still in red," she found herself asking only realizing as she turned that her face was in close proximity to Lelouch's now who looked at her amusedly at her giddiness.

"Yes."

She lightly pecked him on the lips in her joy without even thinking about it. It was only after the fact that she realized what she had done and Lelouch's shocked expression on his face.

"I think I'll head to bed," she quickly said, recognizing the awkwardness of what had just happened, "good night, Lelouch."

With haste she took her leave, not even allowing Lelouch to get in a word, the door whispering shut behind her.

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"Princess?"

Cornelia rubbed her eyes and looked up at Guilford who stood in the doorway holding a pair of mugs.

She motioned to the chair across from her on the other end of the table, numerous papers and folders spread out before her. Almost immediately Guilford realized that Cornelia was going over personnel files for the staff of the Palace.

He handed her the cup of coffee which she took gratefully, almost immediately sipping out of the cup. She promptly placed it down, before reaching up to rub her eyes, the dark circles developing underneath an indicator of the spell of exhaustion she was currently under.

"How's Princess Nunnally," Guilford asked.

"Exhausted," she responded in a tired tone, "emotionally broken. They've kept her here for the last two days Guilford, completely sealed up and no one has visited her, I'm actually the first person that has communicated with her. All she knows is that her brother is dead and up until now, she was alone."

"I see," Guilford said, adjusting his glasses. But there was something else to Cornelia's bearing, he had known her for years, and he recognized that distant contemplative look, as if she was gnawing at something that she didn't want to share with others. He knew that sooner or later she would share it with him, but for now she would bullhead herself through until she had decided what to do with it.

"And what does that," Guilford reached for one of the folders flipping it open, "have to do Alisana Summers."

"The Emperor placed me in charge of the affairs of Nunnally. I am doing just that," she replied, nursing the cup of coffee in one hand while massaging the bridge of her nose, "I'm reviewing the household staff and deciding on what to do with them. Three quarters of them are incompetent."

"Do you think you should be doing this without Princess Nunnally's permission? Even if you are her guardian…"

"Are you saying that I don't know what I'm doing," Cornelia snapped at Guilford, causing him to recoil at the fury behind her words, even as she herself recognized what she had done.

She closed her eyes as she massaged the bridge of her nose again.

"I'm sorry Guilford, my knight, you didn't deserve that."

"You should rest, Princess," he found himself saying, it wasn't very often that he got to see Cornelia this vulnerable and when he did, it only made him worry of the strain that she placed on herself as she pushed herself beyond her physical and emotional limits even further.

"These arrangements can wait a few hours," he continued, "and I don't think anyone would begrudge you to take some time to rest and recuperate."

"I can't," Cornelia admitted, "too much is resting upon me to get this right. But you are right about needing some rest," she glanced up at the clock on the wall before sighing deeply, "I'll clock some sleep after dinner with Nunnally. Just, if anything cataclysmic happens you'll wake me up."

"I promise, Princess."

Cornelia stifled a rather unladylike yawn as she looked over the papers, gathering them up into a neat pile after a moment and shuffling them.

"Well, I think I will go and see to Nunnally. Thank you Guilford."

"You're welcome, Your Highness," he responded, as he watched her go. The door then shut with an audible click as he was left with alone in the room with the paperwork and his cup of coffee.

He should follow Cornelia, but she seemed more focused on her and Nunnally for him to impose upon the two of them.

No, he thought, as he grabbed one of the dossiers, flipping it open. He would be of better use to Cornelia in reducing her workload and stress.

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Lelouch was gone. That was the only conclusion that could be taken, that was what everyone told her. The Black Knights had killed her brother, they told her. They had killed him in cold-blood when he was trying to protect her, killed by Zero.

She was not a violent or evil woman, but there was a part of her that cursed Zero for his very actions. For taking away the very last thing she loved and cared for. Her heart had been ripped out by a man who claimed to be a man of justice. Her brother had done nothing at all, he had done his best to take care of her and this man had killed him.

If it wasn't for her crippled frame this would never have happened to Lelouch. It was her fault, her fault for Lelouch and herself being exiled to Japan, and her fault that he had spent so much time on her instead of himself. It was her fault that he was dead.

She choked back a sob that bobbled up, adding to her despair.

And now here she was, back in the very place that had started this. That had started with her mother's death. And now it took her brother's death to return them to the one place they had been truly happy.

It was unfair, no, the world was not fair. They had done nothing to it, yet it chose to do everything to them in response.

Her head perked up to the sound of the door opening.

"Nunnally?"

"Sister Cornelia."

"It's time for dinner."

Yet, with the loss of Lelouch and Euphie, Cornelia was there, a different Cornelia from the one that used to play with them in the gardens of Aries. This Cornelia on the other hand, it didn't take much to sense that she was a warrior who had stained her hands with blood.

In fact…no, Lelouch was not the same as her. Her mind was lying to her. Lelouch was a kind older brother who would not hurt anyone unless forced to. Those feelings that she got off him were a lie. But he had also lied, she knew it. But what had he been lying about?

"Nunnally?"

"I'm sorry sister, I'm just not feeling well," she said.

"Is it Lelouch," Cornelia asked. There, there it was again, that little niggling feeling in her words. What was Cornelia hiding from her.

"Yes," she responded, "can you just have supper served to me? I need some time to think."

She could feel the irritation wash over her from Cornelia, but she held her ground. She needed time, Cornelia at least gave her some semblance of humanity for the time being.

"As you wish Nunnally. I will see you in the morning."

"Thank you."

The door then was shut, allowing Nunnally back into her thoughts.

It wasn't right for her to dwell in her own despair. Not when Cornelia was trying her best for her. She needed to her own house in order. Lelouch would not want her like this, cooped up and depressed.

She would live for the both of them, she quietly pledged.

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"What do you mean you cannot release those records? I'm a Baron and a Knight of the Round," Suzaku said as caustically as he could into his mobile.

For four hours now he was getting a runaround by the Office of Personnel. Every single time he thought he got some headway, he got slapped back down. Now it had reached the boiling point in which he was throwing around his rank hoping to get some info, any info, on the Duke of New Haven's unit.

All he had gotten was their unit designation, the Knights of Idris, and at first he had thought it would be useful, the newswires had a tendency of talking about units that carried a titled name. Instead, the newswires were completely void of any mention.

That was why he was talking to Personnel, because they would have access to any records that he was looking for.

"Baron Kururugi," a new voice sounded on his mobile, a more official sounding one, "I apologize, but getting access to Force Recon records take time due to the position of the unit. Considering this unit is now considered inactive pending reassignment, it will require authorization for an unsealing, which only can be authorized by the Knight of One or a member of the royalty. Since you have neither, I can only recommend you pursue those avenues of access. I apologize Baron. Good day."

The mobile then went silent, leaving Suzaku with a bit more information than he previously had. Of course, it took four hours of his time, and now it was less than twelve hours before the duel was supposed to begin and night was beginning to fall outside the hangar in which he currently quartered himself in.

His head perked up as a cup of green tea was placed in front of him, his eyes making contact with the chocolate brown eyes of Yuki, who still wore the same attire that the Duke had given her, the only exemption was that her hair had been let down.

"Thank you," he said, taking the cup.

"Trouble," she asked, backing away from him, but placing her hands behind her back as she stood at attention.

Suzaku arched an eyebrow at the words. This was one of the few times Yuki had spoken. It was unnerving the way she acted like a shadow, more seen than heard.

"You could say that," he replied, taking a sip.

She said nothing in response, merely returning his look.

"Can I ask why you are doing this?"

"It is my job."

"To be a servant to another person," Suzaku asked with irritation lacing his voice, "don't you want for anything else?"

"My job is to be your majordomo, My Lord" she replied, "I am to cater to your needs and demands, whatever they are."

There was an edge to her tone, Suzaku became immediately aware of, either it was from anger or a defensive reaction, but there it was. The fact that he was asking annoyed her.

"And you have no problem with this?"

She merely looked at him for a moment, before choosing to walk away, going through the open door and out into the hangar.

"Asking a girl if she has a problem with something isn't exactly the wisest of things," a voice sounded from outside the door, "especially when she has something she doesn't want to talk about."

Suzaku warily looked towards the door, as the newcomer appeared in it, the boyish voice easily recognizable…

"Hello Gino," Suzaku said guardedly, "and you wouldn't happen to know what she doesn't want to talk about?"

"Most of the servant class, especially Numbers have a jaded history," he responded, "and it's not a well-hidden fact, but Britannia has quite a few human trafficking rings that exist to supply the….demands of the nobility. Odds are your Yuki is a product of one of those trafficking rings."

It seemed the more he learned about Britannia, the more sickened he became. The idea of trafficking of humans was deplorable, but if Gino was right, it was part of the system. There was no way he could fight against it. But it didn't mean it couldn't be a target in the future, but right now, he needed to focus on Yuki. But the more prevailing concern in comparison to that, was the presence of the Knight of Three.

"What brings you here Gino?"

"A peace offering," Gino replied, revealing a thick folder from behind his back, "the entire jacket for the Knights of Idris, compliments of the Knight of One."

Instantly he was on guard. The fact that here were the very files he sought in the hands of someone who he had only exchanged introductions with, supposedly from the man who served as the Emperor's guard dog.

"And to what do I owe Lord Waldstein?"

"Nothing actually. He only thought it would be fair that you know who you are fighting since the Duke requested that he officiate the duel. That and this duel is the talk of the town."

"What?"

"You didn't know," Gino asked, visibly surprised at Suzaku's reaction, "Suzaku. This is the first duel in almost twenty years. It's all over the news. I'm surprised the press aren't camped outside the base wanting to interview you."

That means someone leaked it, he thought, and there was only one possibility as to who that could be.

"Can I have the file?"

"Sure," Gino replied walking up to Suzaku and handing him the folder, "though if you want, I can tell you what's in it."

"Make yourself comfortable then. Sorry it's not much, but I wanted to keep near the Lancelot while they upgrade it for the duel tomorrow."

"Nah, don't worry. It seems kinda homely," Gino responded flopping himself onto the couch.

"So the Knights of Idris. Well I guess I should tell you what Force Recon is. You're familiar with the Tier One designation?"

Suzaku nodded. Tier One was the Britannian designation for units or elements that partook in special operations missions. This could range from anything from deep range strikes to simple reconnaissance.

"Force Recon is one of three groups designated as Tier One operators. The Knights of Idris were one of the six units that were formed when Force Recon was created five years ago. The Duke himself lobbied for and got a unit."

"He lobbied?"

"Nobility have that opportunity," Gino said with a shrug, "of course, it was kinda frowned upon. But he had a proven record from serving in the invasion of Japan, so they let him form Team Six."

"Anyways, they got deployed to do deep reconnaissance and subversions in Area 18 about three years ago. They went completely off the grid until a few months before Princess Cornelia launched Operation Megiddo where they reported to her. She then assigned them their units and basically were given a carte blanche to operate independently. They were involved in several raids and assaults all over Area 18. In fact, they were the first to encounter the Eighteen's Bamides in combat near Fallujah. They were then recalled after Knight personally executed the fifth member of the team for cowardice."

"He killed the fifth member," Suzaku asked incredulously.

"During the Bamides encounter, their fifth member bailed on them and returned back to friendly lines, reporting the rest of the team dead. Couple hours later, the rest of the team shows up and the Duke shoots him on the spot. There was a rumor the two never got along and he wasn't a pick of the Duke's. But the evidence of the man's cowardice was without doubt."

But to summarily execute a man without trial, Suzaku thought.

"What can you tell me about the team," he asked, taking his mind off the implications.

"Collectively? Other than the Duke and new Baroness, commoners and half- breeds."

"Not their lineage, please."

"But that's their strength. Miyazaki and the Baroness are loyal to Knight because they are indebted to him. Without him, they would be nothing. Swann was a commoner before he was a KF pilot, but he keeps with the Duke because the Duke tolerates his quirks. "

"I don't mean personalities. Fighting styles, preferred methods of attack, all of that."

"Hunh," Gino responded blowing his hair out of his eyes, "that actually wasn't in any of the files. Best I can do is give you what I know."

"Go ahead, it's better than what I have."

"Well then. Swann is their heavy weapons guy," he then stopped as suddenly Yuki appeared silently with a cup of coffee handing it Gino, who thanked her before she headed off without so much as a word.

"Now where was I? Oh yes, Miyazaki. I heard he rolls with a more balanced getup. None of these Knightmares are your stock units, they've all been tuned and customized to each devicer. New Haven has no ranged weapons except for the additional harkens he has mounted," he then trailed off.

"What about Harrington?"

"Harrington. I have no clue on. All I know is during the exercises I ran with when I was taking the class is that she's the one that claims most of the kills on us, and we never even had a hint that she was around. A lot of the students complained that the Duke was cheating in the class, but I'm not so sure. I had their communications tapped and they were definitely communicating with a fourth member. Dorothea, that is the Knight of Four, thinks that there is a possibility that she's a sniper, but without us having detected her Knightmare, she could be sitting on top of us and we would have never known."

"Interesting," Suzaku noted. From the sounds of it the Baroness was the largest threat and if he could neutralize her, then it would be...

"Don't discount New Haven Suzaku.," Gino warned seriously, "there's a reason he was a favorite for running The Crucible at the academy. The passing rate in his month class is the lowest, but those who come out of it are considered the best and brightest."

"And why would you say that?"

"I took the class," Gino said with a wide grin, "Knight's a completely unforgiving and ruthless teacher who doesn't give a care about your status, and I have to say it's for the better. Anyways," he got himself up from the couch, "I've probably said too much about the old Salamander. So I'll see you at the duel tomorrow. Most of the Knight's'll be watching so don't choke."

"Gino...thanks."

He waved it off.

"That's what comrades are for. You have a good night, Suzaku."

"You too."

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"Well what do you think," Lloyd asked in his usual cheery tone as they stood before the kneeling form of the rebuilt and upgraded Lancelot.

"Wow ," was the only word that Suzaku could say at the new and improved Knightmare.

"It's the best we could do in three days. But the Conquista solves a lot of the problems the earlier Lancelot had. An integrated float system that will soon be standard for all Knightmares, better ground agility, reduced energy consumption, larger energy reserves, we even equipped it with a Hadron attachment for the VARIS to give it a longer ranged punch."

"Sounds good."

"That's good. Considering you paid for most of it."

"What?"

"Well I couldn't get the authorized funds from the ASEEC in time. So I siphoned both your wages and a bit of money from the starter fund for your barony. I'm sure Prince Schneizel will reimburse you."

"Did you...just hold a grudge?"

"Oh most certainly not. I merely used the assets available to further the Lancelot. Sometimes sacrifices are necessary in the pursuit of science. I'm offended you would think I'd be so petty."

Yeah, he definitely is holding a grudge, Suzaku thought, looking around.

"Where's Cecile?"

"The Duke has been at the training grounds for two hours. That was after partying most of the night. The rest of his team has been there since at least four," Cecile stated, as if Suzaku's observation of her absence had summoned her.

Cecile looked tired Suzaku noted as he turned to her, she still wore that wan smile she always did.

"You stayed up all night to spy on them?"

"Well, I did the best I could," she admitted, "it's hard to keep an eye on the Duke and his team when they are in two places."

"Don't tell me..."

"Thankfully, no. I just made sure his party started then I went to watch the rest of his team. I still haven't seen their Knightmares though. They are sequestered off in a restricted area of the training area. As to the training area, it's modeled after the major areas of Paris, but the odds are it'll be in the center area because it offers the best points of ambush and ways to limit the Lancelot's mobility."

She then placed a hand over her mouth to stifle a yawn.

"I asked a friend for anything special about the training area. The only thing she told me was that the Knights of Idris work as an aggressor command unit at the site, simulating both EU Knightmares and possible irregular models."

That means they have both terrain and experience advantages, Suzaku thought grimly, with this new Lancelot I should have the technology advantage.

"Well then we got to get this to the Avalon. Lloyd, Cecile, I'm going to need you to watch my back from the Avalon. If they try anything, I want to know."

He then looked back to the Lancelot Conquista.

Even with this new development, there was this niggling sensation in the back of his mind that he shouldn't take anything for granted.

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Suzaku was now safely secured into the cockpit of the Lancelot Conquista as the Avalon now approached the training area.

It was now that he was getting a view of the vast expanse of the training area now.

Cecile was right in that it was a model of Paris, which meant that Britannia was actively working on wargaming scenarios for the invasion of the EU in the near future. No one would splurge a massive amount of expenses on a model of a city in the middle of nowhere simply for training exercises. Though, how long it was there was up to debate. If they were going to allow a live-fire duel, then there was a high probability that they had decided to write it off for an entirely different stratagem.

"Oh my, it looks like this is going to be an interesting spectacle," Lloyd chimed on the cockpit display to his left as he appeared, "looks like you're the man of the hour."

Before Suzaku could ask, the screen disappeared, shifting over in front of him and zooming in on the edge of the training area, where several VTOL transports in civilian colors, all of them marked in with various news agencies that populate Pendragon.

Suzaku could only stifle a groan as he realized how quickly this was spinning out of control, his still healing cheek itching as a fast-becoming sign of irritation.

"And I take it we can't clear the airspace."

"Without the Knight of One saying so, no, you're just going to have to tough it out, my boy. Well, looks like we're getting ready to start, the Knight of One wants the comm. panel have fun Suzaku. Oh…and kick their asses."

Lloyd then moved out of the pickup as Bismarck Waldstein, the Knight of One, entered into it. A new screen popped up beside it, revealing a black helmeted figure in the cockpit of a Knightmare.

"Good morning, Baron Suzaku Kururugi, Duke Alexander Knight, I am Bismarck Waldstein, Knight of One. I will be serving as the Master of the Field this morning.

"Lord Waldstein," the Duke responded, Suzaku quickly following, he wasn't familiar with any of the decorum of a duel.

"I apologize for the audience. Duels are supposed to be closed events, but since this is a special situation, the Emperor has deemed to make it open to the media."

"That's fine, Lord Waldstein. I suppose the best we can hope for is a stray shot in their direction."

Bismarck's mouth twitched in amusement at the statement. It took only a moment for Suzaku that the reason the Knight of One would find this amusing would be betting on the odds were that this conversation was being streamed right to the media.

"Baron Kururugi, Duke Knight. It is my first and foremost obligation to urge a peaceful resolution of your differences, even at this late date. I ask you both now: can you not compose your quarrel?"

Suzaku said nothing as the Duke responded with a shrug, his face unseen behind what he could only describe as a motorcycle helmet..

"Get on with it, Lord Waldstein, I need to give the young Baron here a lesson in manners before my noon tea."

_Of all the asshole-_, Suzaku chopped that thought of, because he knew almost immediately, that was what the Duke wished to do. He wanted to get under his skin.

"Duke Knight, Baron Kururugi, you have agreed to the Edinburgh Protocols of dueling. However, since there are no stipulations for Knightmare dueling, we will use a modified Edinburgh. As such, it will be as follows: Participants are allowed at any time to yield once they feel that their honor has been satisfied, when they do so they simply have to announce that they yield, once done so the attacker shall immediately cease his attacks. Second, while accidents do happen, explicit kill-strikes will meet immediate censure for the perpetrator. Do you understand Baron Kururugi?"

"I do," he replied, hands curling in reflex over the controls.

"Duke Knight?"

"We understand."

"Very well then. You may commence in five minutes."

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"So, who you think is going to win," Gino Weinberg asked the gathering of the Knights of the Round currently lounging in the villa that had been given to them. They were situated in which they could watch the drone coverage of the upcoming duel.

"How much you want to bet," the Vampire of Britannia and Knight of Ten, Luciano Bradley responded snidely as he tossed a knife up and caught it back between his fingers before flicking it back up in the air.

"How about assignments? Winner gets to send loser to an assignment he is given of his choice."

Luciano blinked in surprise the knife coming to a stop in his hand.

"That sounds reasonable," he admitted after a moment.

"Careful Gino," Nonette Enneagram, the Knight of Nine, teased, flicking one of her braids to the side with the back of her hand, "Bradley will send you to a mission you know you won't like."

"Why would I do that? The missions he would hate are the ones I get to show my genius."

This brought an uncomfortable pause to the conversation before Gino cleared his voice.

"Alright then. So...I bet Suzaku will win this, but it'll be close."

"Please. The Salamander will make short work of this upstart like those ragheads in 18," Luciano retorted.

"Well I think it'll be a tie," Nonette declared, "you don't know Al like I do. But I think what the new Knight of Eleven lacks in command experience, he makes up in raw skill and technology to counterbalance the Duke's strategic grasp."

"Dorothea, you've been awfully silent."

The Knight of Four reclined slightly in her chair nibbling the end of her thumb.

"I think it will be a draw," she finally admitted, "I've never heard the Duke be stupid, and we all know what Kururugi is capable of. In the end they will probably declare it after they both got their pound of flesh."

"Well this isn't any fun, but leave it to the women to take the middle ground," Luciano replied snidely.

"What was that Luciano," Nonette asked sweetly, but there was steel in her tone, "would you like a lesson in what us women could do."

"Can't you take a joke?"

"Depends on what you take as a joke, Vampire."

"Quiet guys, they're about to begin."

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Suzaku was slammed into the back of his chair as the Lancelot, the wings of the Float System flipping open and activating, bestowing flight upon the Knightmare.

"Suzaku," Cecile's voice flooded into his ear, "I think we got a trace of them over by the Arc de Triomphe. It's a faint trace but it matches the profile of a Gloucester."

"Roger that," he replied, turning the Conquista towards the coordinates provided by Cecile.

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"He's going for Lee," Victoria's voice sounded in the Duke's ear, causing him to look up from the book he was reading.

"As expected," the Duke murmured as he tapped the side of the helmet the heads up display in the helmet appearing once again as it polarized, showing him the position of the Lancelot as it darted towards Swann's position, he tapped his fingers over the spine of the dog-eared paperback book.

"Does the Lancelot match the description Yuki gave us?"

"Affirmative."

That would make it a bit more difficult than what he wanted. He knew they could easily handle the Lancelot, but this new "Conquista" the Earl called it added a new foil that he didn't appreciate, nor want because now it changed the balance of power with this new unknown variable.

"ETA to projected weapons range is forty-five seconds Al," Yoshi's voice sounded.

"Alright then. Operational Plan Leonidas Five. Lee, go Xerxes Two."

"Oh come on Al."

"Xerxes Two, Lee, you want those mods?"

A sigh sounded from the other end, "Understood. After all I am a merciful God."

The Duke rolled his eyes heavenward.

"Vic when I give you the word..."

"Understood," she replied.

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"Why would the Knights of Idris leave one of their own out in the open alone," Cecile asked Lloyd as she watched Suzaku rapidly approach the contact.

"Beats me. Could be a mistake, you said the Duke was up all night partying," Lloyd responded with a shrug, "all I know is Suzaku has caught a lucky break."

"That's what bothers me," Cecily paused as she looked at something that caused her pause.

Why were there tires here, she thought as she looked them over again in scrutiny. Then noticing in another spot another large pile of tires, and another.

"Something's not right, Lloyd."

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There he was Suzaku mentally rejoiced as he caught sight of his quarry as it came out from the shadow of the mockup of the French structure.

Already he could see that it was heavily armed Gloucester completely in black as it began ripple firing its missiles up towards him at the same time raising its right arm up with a chopped down version of the giant cannon the Gloucester's carried, firing it up towards him while firing what looked like a rifle in the other hand.

Reflexes immediately kicked in as he spun the Lancelot and worked to gain altitude before juking the missiles to the left and behind him, the missiles would run out of fuel before they got back around.

Leveling the VARIS he fired back but to his stunned belief the Gloucester didn't charge forward to dodge the bracket like he wanted it moved sideways slipping back into the cover of the Arc de Triomphe.

The VARIS rounds pummeled into the ground, vaporizing concrete into massive plumes that clouded the area .

Then fire recommenced from the cloud as Suzaku darted in as two airburst shells bracketed him back rocking the Lancelot as shrapnel dinged off the armor as the Gloucester reappeared hulking two of those cannons now.

If he was using those cannons, and if the autoloader time is the same, that means he can't fight me close.

The Gloucester fired its cannons again and Suzaku swooped sown like a menacing hawk as the shells exploded harmlessly, VARIS now leveled on Gloucester as it stunned him by throwing down its weapons and holding its hands up.

"YIELD!"

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"Yield. What the hell," Luciano exclaimed.

"Why would he do that," Gino stated equally shocked, "it's not like Suzaku had inflicted any damage."

His head turned to Nonette who merely had a small knowing smile as she looked at the back of her hand as is if it was the most interesting thing in the world.

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Suzaku lowered his VARIS in confusion at the situation. There was no reason the Gloucester should yield so suddenly.

"Where are they," he demanded.

The pilot of the Gloucester said nothing, except hold up its hand now in the form of a gun, extending it:

"SUZAKU GET OUT-"

"Bang!"

Suzaku didn't even have time to even react, as he suddenly found himself spinning around, damage indicators flashing crimson where his Float System was as he be barely brought himself to a hard landing springing the Lancelot to its feet using its slash harkens, mad laughter filling his ear, even as he could swear he could feel Lloyd's mad howl at the damage he had just taken in his bones.

"YOU SEE THAT AL?! I CAN SHOOT MIND BULLETS! WITH MY MIND! THAT'S TELEKENISIS AL!""

"Dead men don't talk Lee."

"Oh come on. I jobbed it and that's how you treat me."

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"Good effects, standby" the Duke of New Haven's voice purred in Victoria's ear as the ejection port on the large rifle opened up, a white hot cartridge flying out and towards the ground below, even as another port let out a horrific shriek as heated gasses were expelled from the chamber.

"Vic, NOW."

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That could only have been a railgun, Cecile thought grimly as Lloyd had curled up in a ball rocking back and forth now crying about his Lancelot. That was the only thing that could propel a round that fast that Suzaku had no chance to respond.

How they had a Knightmare with a rail gun astounded her, the Lancelot's VARIS was the only existing rail gun in the Britannian arsenal, and it propelled rounds nowhere this fast. The amount of energy to do that would have melted the gun right away, so they had opted for a less energy-intensive design that could put more rounds downrange quickly.

_So how did they do it_, she thought as she tracked the shot back to its source, just in time to see a massive thermal bloom and white hot object fly off before they quickly disappeared.

"Suzaku, one of them is at the Eiffel Tower."

"Ro-"

Suddenly a loud squealing sounded on the comm. headset caused her to scrunch her eyes as she ripped away the headset. Her eyes snapped to a display that showed that all communications were being jammed by AN/ALQ-101 multimode jammers, jammers found only on recently retired electronic warfare variant of the Spitfire fighter.

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"Attacking does not merely consist in assaulting walled cities or striking at an army in battle array," the Duke said with a smile as he watched the feed from Victoria as Suzaku quickly darted the Lancelot into the buildings to avoid the next shot that wouldn't come, "it must include the art of assailing the enemy's mental equilibrium."

He glanced over to where Yoshi's Gloucester was, covered in a camouflage tarp that had prevented detection from the air.

"You're up Yoshi," he said, "you know what to do. He'll be exactly where we had planned."

Yoshi said nothing, the tarp falling away to reveal the same matte-black finished Gloucester as it darted forward and over the bridge before taking a sharp right turn and disappearing into the city.

He could only imagine right now what was running through the young Baron's mind. The loss of any communications between himself and the Avalon on top of the loss of his ability to fly pretty much reduced him to below their level. If anything, he had no doubt that Kururugi was fuming because he had fallen so easily for such a simple trap. But he couldn't be the one to be blamed, there was no way for Suzaku to know what he had in his bag of tricks.

Britannia might love its chess, but for the Duke himself, his game of choice was high-stakes poker. Placing his wits against another opponent in a game of both prediction and mental fortitude was infinitely better than the stiff, civilized, and quite frankly, BORING game of moving pieces on a board for some kind of pseudo-fulfillment of the Britannian ambition for conquest. No, conquest was looking into your opponent's eyes when it dawns on him that you hold all the cards, and he has just bet everything on a game of risk and chance.

That was war.

It'd be interesting what the Baron's game of choice would be, Knight thought to himself, as he quietly hummed the tune of the French national anthem, reaching for an activation stub.

He had sent his team out to the field last night for more than just getting a lay of the land, they all knew it like the back of their hand. No, it was to set into place a further foil for the Baron. A foil in which he was about to play.

When he had first seen it back during the Area 18 days, he had been confused by the purpose of it. Until one of the local warlords had informed him that it was part of the warning network for several of the war-torn cities in Area 18. It informed those observing that trouble was in that exact area and help was needed.

It wasn't until Riyadh that he had realized the impact it could have. It allowed various organized groups to quickly descend upon Britannia's attack, but it also messed with the Factsphere Sensors of their Gloucesters. It had been a damned near catastrophe until Cornelia and himself had quickly divined a counteroffensive with the assistance of air support. After that, it was only a matter of time before Britannia had whittled the resistance to nothing.

But for this case, the piles of tires strewn all over the area were exactly arranged to take into account the meteorological forecast for this moment. As the Duke pressed the activation stub and dozens of piles of tire were lit ablaze, black smoke already beginning to choke the air around the battlefield and reduce visibility to nothing.

_I shall render unto thee the condition of a cripple, complete with deafness and blindness, _the Duke caustically thought as he watched the smoke beginning to blow over the "Eiffel Tower". This was exactly how he fought, controlling the terrain and battlespace of his opponents, it was what made him one of the best, and it was what made him the commander of the defensive aggressor force for the wargames that Britannia had held in order to ascertain just how costly it would be to take Paris.

"I am all in, Kururugi," he simply stated, his hands flexing restively over the controls, "and with this I hold. Now, let's see what you have in your hand."

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Cornelia quietly stifled a yawn as she walked down the hallway of the Aries Villa. What had originally been planned as a small nap had turned into almost twelve hours of uninterrupted rest, which, when she thought clearly about it, she desperately needed. She was now washed and in a new uniform, nursing a cup of coffee a servant had brewed her as soon as she was dressed.

Nunnally was still asleep according to the servants, having been most of the night, so Cornelia had chosen to bypass her quarters and instead head back towards the mountain of paperwork she knew was awaiting her in the other wing as she set a course for there.

"Man, this sucks," Bart Darlton's voice rang out, causing her to frown as she stopped, "and here I thought we would actually get the fight."

"Settle down Bart," David's voice responded, "even the newsies are throwing a fit over the fact that they can't see anything going on now."

"You think the Duke actually planned all of this," Claudio asked.

"Iunno, what about Kururugi, that was a pretty nasty hit he took," Bart responded with a shrug.

"If he was dumb enough to fall for that stunt, he'll be dumb enough to fall any other one."

_Why are they talking about Kururugi,_ she thought as she turned herself into the large lounge that the Glaston Knight's had taken up residence, where a massive television was streaming what looked like a battle that was raging. All of their backs were to her as one of the more adventurous newsies went in closer to show what almost looked like the Lancelot a large chunk of its glide pack missing.

That was then the headline popped up causing her blood to run cold.

_Duke of New Haven vs. Knight of Eleven, Duel to the Death?_

The cup fell out of her hand, shattering upon the marble floor.

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Suzaku cursed as he kept his back to the building, detaching the Glide Pack from the Lancelot as it fell with an audible crunch as the compromised unit.

He had been stupid, so incredibly stupid. He had been warned at the possibility that one of the Idris were snipers, now he was positive that could only have been a sniper. There had been no warning, and whatever hit him was a lot more powerful than anything short of his VARIS.

But the accuracy was what scared him the most, as he looked over one more time the hole where the wing for the Glide System was. Of course, he had been an idiot sitting there in hover, but still, that kind of shot with that type of accuracy…but still, the level of precision like that, without risking a hit to the cockpit, that was master level.

Still, in spite of that fear, he could not help but be angry not only at himself, but at the Duke himself. Using one of his subordinates as a pawn to trap him, that was, no, that was worse. He could almost imagine the cold and callous calculation that had gone into such a measure and the willingness to sacrifice anything or anyone for victory.

It was so….Lelouch like, he thought with maddening fury.

He looked over the map one more time, if Cecile had said they were at the Eiffel Tower, then the odds are, that was where the sniper was. He couldn't…

Suddenly, he felt it again, his mind suddenly assuming a fight or flight as he darted the Lancelot away from the building, just as a Gloucester leaped down from on top of the building, sword driven down where he had just been. The Gloucester quickly darting away before Suzaku could recover, pulling out a rifle and firing at him.

He brought his Blaze Luminous to bear, deflecting the rounds away, even as he sought to reorganize himself, firing off his VARIS, but the Gloucester was simply too fast for those rounds as they smashed harmlessly into a storefront.

That could only be Miyazaki, Suzaku quickly realized, becoming even more incensed as he watched the Knightmare use its Harkens to leap on top of a building and dart away.

"Is that all you do Knight," he snarled, more to himself than anyone, the jamming still in effect, "sit comfortably in the back while your subordinates do your work for you. Despicable."

"My Knights are my army and my castle walls," the Duke's voice sounded in his headset when the jamming suddenly cleared, "while a king may lead his men, he must be fully cognizant of the implications of his loss. Think of it as battlespace pragmatism."

"I think it's cowardly of you when this is our duel."

"You are mistaken Kururugi, you insulted my unit as well as me. For they are I and I am them. We are an inseparable entity bound by personal reasons. When you insult me, you insult them."

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"Yoshi, switch to Themistocles One."

"But Al..."

"You heard me Yoshi."

"Understood...where would you like me to guide him."

"Versailles."

"Understood."

"Quit hiding behind your pretentious bullshit Duke," Suzaku snapped, "your men are not pawns in your little game."

A soft whistle from Vic sounded in his helmet, even as the Duke frowned.

"Vic, jam the main band. I want Kururugi to hear me, but not the media or anyone else, Yoshi, tight-beam him."

"Done."

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The jamming was back, yet now in even more force, the electronic snow blanketing everything for Suzaku.

"I find myself confused Kururugi. You fight for Britannia, yet you abhor the tactics and techniques practiced by Zero, who was a slave to Britannian psychology because he was Britannian. You fight against the very thing you fight for. To change a system that has not fundamentally changed in two hundred years. Unless..."

Suzaku's blood chilled as he heard a low chuckle.

"That is unless you're not fighting to change the system at all. That's right, isn't it Baron. You're fighting only for the sake of yourself."

"So what is driving you Kururugi, it isn't ambition, Cornelia hates ambitious people. No, I think it's far deeper than that. I think it's regret. Something you did is driving you...but I tell you what Kururugi. It won't matter what you do or who you kill, because every day, you will look in that mirror, and you will hate yourself and long to be freed of the burden of fighting for the evil that you hate."

"It's almost too comical, if it wasn't sad. You're even more of a rat in a cage than the Japanese. Your freedom is your cell and your penance is your bars. Your very existence has become a mistake."

"And what is more hilarious, it's that you want so badly to forget and wash your sins, that you are willing to bath yourself in blood it would make sense for the Massacre Princess to recruit a Knight of death."

For Suzaku, each and every word had been like a knife being twisted in him, harder and harder.

Because almost every word was damnably accurate. There was no mercy offered or given in the verbal onslaught that the Duke used as a cudgel to beat away at him.

But there was a point in which that was passed by the Duke as everything cleared for Suzaku, the rage which flared out of control suddenly became tempered as Suzaku spotted Yoshi's Gloucester in the shadows of a building as the smoke cleared for a moment.

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"Yield," Yoshi's voice sounded in the Duke's ears, creating a frown.

"Yoshi, what happened?"

"Whatever you did Al, you pissed him off something fierce."

_That's exactly what I wanted, but for him to take down Yoshi….he's not out of control like I want. Not good._

"Vic, where'd he go?"

"I don't know. I lost him in the clutter."

_Shit._

"We're moving….NOW!"

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It was obvious now that they were coordinating their attacks in spite of the jamming, Suzaku thought as he adjusted his headset, his mind finding a sense of clarity after being disorganized most of the battle, instead switching it to the mobile frequency and dialing a call for Cecile.

"Suzaku," her concerned voice filled the headset, confirming his suspicions that instead of military bands they were communicating via less secure civilian bands, it was a stroke of brilliance, no one would think of it because Britannian military honor would find it beneath them. But for a guerilla fight, his

"I got Miyazaki," he quickly said, "you have any idea where the other two are?"

"Is that Suzaku," Lloyd's voice sounded angrily, "give it to me."

"They pulled out of the Eiffel Tower and have fallen back to Versailles, Suzaku," she quickly said, in order to prevent a showdown between Lloyd and Suzaku over the comms.

"Thanks, we'll talk later."

He cut the link.

So that's where you decided to end your theatrics, Suzaku thought bitterly, a king and his castle...

He immediately darted in between the buildings, heading right where Versailles would be in this fake Paris.

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"Well, at least we're going to get some kind of ending," Luciano snorted, derision lacing his tone, "this has been incredibly boring."

"Would you just have all five of them duke it out with none of this? I think this has been a lot more entertaining than a straight up fight," Gino retorted, looking to Nonette, Dorothea had stepped out a short while ago to pressing matters.

"Bradley, if you want a straight up fight, here you go, make sure you don't blink," she simply responded a chilled smile, "I personally think Al could kick your ass blindfolded."

"I sincerely doubt that," he scoffed, "the man is nothing more cheap parlor tricks, he couldn't handle a real pilot."

"Fine. He lasts more than two minutes against Kururugi, we get to hear a five-minute speech about why you suck. He lasts less, and I'll help you put together that Valkyrie squad you keep harping about."

"Deal."

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"Welcome Baron Kururugi, you wanted me, here I am."

Suzaku came to a stop before the fake Versailles where a lone Gloucester stood.

It was in the same matte-black camouflage that defeated any attempts to differentiate its features and joints, on it' head was instead something that could only define as demonically inspired, a pair of horns curled up and back, and the head mounted a pair of burning orange eyes to complete the package.

It also stood taller than his Lancelot to his realization as it stood there, massive sword in its right hand and large conformed shield in its left.

"This is what you wanted, isn't it?"

"Possibly," the elder noble responded cryptically, sword raised up and leveled towards him, Suzaku responded by aiming his VARIS in response.

"Let the games begin," the Duke cried, charging forward sword pulled back in a swing.

Instincts kicked in as Suzaku fired the VARIS, but the rounds slammed harmlessly into the shield, puffs of smoke the only indicator of the hit as pieces of metal flew off, the Duke using the momentum of the impact to go with it, objects suddenly flying off the sword hand causing Suzaku's landspinners to squeal as he narrowly evaded them.

But then the Duke was on him, sword already swinging and Suzaku could only bring up his Blaze Luminous to absorb the blow, only now finding himself flying up from the surprising powerful hit as the Duke's slash harkens chased after him, wrapping around the leg and whipping him towards the ground.

He barely had enough time to use his own harkens to defeat the pull as the Duke's Harkens retracted, his own Harkens pushing him away from where he would have been, the ground caving as the sword crashed into the ground.

Now's my chance, he thought bringing the VARIS to bear, only for it to suddenly explode as it was torn in half by Vic's expert aim.

The shock quickly disappeared as the Duke's massive sword flashed towards him, Suzaku ducking under it, his own MVS flashing towards the center of the Gloucester, only to bite air as the Knightmare had, to his stunned disbelief, somersaulted over him. Coming to a stop before speeding away and around, allowing Suzaku enough time to get both of his swords out.

This was entirely different from the fights with Kallen, Suzaku realized, whilst she was powerful, she was reckless, using raw power to attack him, everything with the Duke was precise and brutally efficient, not a single effort was wasted. And with Victoria somewhere with her ungodly accuracy...

"Don't worry Baron, I've already ordered Vic to stand down her attacks, of course, even if you beat me...but that's beside the point."

The Duke was back, aimed low, sword more like a jousting lance.

Suzaku lowered himself down, swords held defensively, ready to parry the attack.

Only to be rewarded with slots in the shield dispensing smoke canisters in his face.

Then there was nothing, as he was suddenly whipped around damage indicators on his arm flashing at the joint, he caught a glimpse of harkens being pulled off his left arm.

_He's just toying with me, there's got to be some pattern to his attacks, other than these harkens he's using he only has that sword. But how does he have me tracked...it has to be Harrington, she has to be able to see through the smoke with something._

Getting out of the smoke, he felt a flash as he leapt up, sword slashing through where his legs had been, spinning around as his harkens shot out, one of them digging into the left hip of the Duke's machine.

However, exultation turned to horror as the end of the split and slid back to reveal a clawed hand that snapped the Harken wire.

"Get over here," the Duke snarled, yanking the wire.

He quickly detached the hardpoint off the hip, aiming with his wrist to latch and drag him out of the swing of the sword.

The Gloucester had absolutely no armor plating, Suzaku realized as he dashed forward, landspinners squealing, that was the only reason he was able to keep up with the Lancelot, and with that kind of damage...I have him.

Yet he didn't have him, as he suddenly realized, the Gloucester was deliberately acting lamed, as it parried BOTH of his swords with one giant swing, and brought its shield-claw in a bear-like swipe, taking off the head of the Lancelot. He barely escaped the sword being brought down through his arm. The Duke spinning the Gloucester around and chasing after him.

Yet now Suzaku did have the speed advantage, the Duke's act was feigned for the most part, but the damage was there as he realized as it lagged behind.

I can't attack him like this, every time I do, he already is ready for it, and my swords might be MVS, but against that much hard steel, it doesn't matter, the Duke's Gloucester is just more physically strong than my unit, and while I have the speed advantage, he has almost every advantage because he is obviously the better duelist than I am.

_How am I going to do this?_

_Every single time I attack him, he merely parries and counters me exactly how I'm going to disenga-_…._THAT'S IT! The reason he's beating me is because. He. Knows. I. Won't. Commit. _

He didn't like the idea that was blooming in his mind, but the Duke was winning this battle through sheer attrition, and if he didn't do anything soon.

He spun the Lancelot around and charged, his last gambit in trying to win this duel, darting straight for the Gloucester as it pulled its sword back into a cross.

_Almost….Almost…..NOW!_

He aimed his Slash Harkens down, using them to boost himself up in the air, with the sun to his back, as he came down, the Duke raising up his shield as he spun the Lancelot around in preparation to kick the shield, which the Duke knew was coming. Instead, the moment his Harkens snapped back in, he deployed them, digging them into the shield as the wires went taught and gave him a slight boost as his third Harken hit the ground in front of the Gloucester, allowing him to pole vault the Duke and land right behind him.

Swinging the swords, he brought them across, only to have them blocked by that damnable giant sword again, as time stood still in stunned shock, as Suzaku realized, that the Duke had driven the giant sword through his own cockpit block to stop him from bisecting his Gloucester with his swords, and then time resumed he went flying as the Gloucester spun around, shield used as a giant club, the Lancelot sliding along the ground as he fought the controls and used his hip slash Harken to boost himself back to his feet.

But the Duke was there, giant claw outstretched straight for his midsection and he could only bring up his swords in a sweep as the he felt that urge to survive kick in.

Only the two were interrupted from finishing as gunfire perforated the area around them, a group of Gloucester's landed around them.

"Cease this duel at once," Cornelia snarled in a barely controlled fury at the scene of the two battered Knightmare Frames. This exactly how she didn't want things to do. She knew the Duke had an ego, but to go so far as to challenge Suzaku to something so archaic….stupid was the nicest of terms she could give.

"By my order, the order of the Second Princess of Britannia, I command you to cease this duel immediately."

"Princess Cornelia," Bismarck spoke up, "I apologize, but as Master of the Field, I must demand that you leave the field now. You do not have the power to end this duel under any circumstances. Only the participants of the duel can end it either through yielding or through satisfying their honor."

"But-"

"Those are the rules, Princess, now I would advise you…."

"Lord Bismarck. The Baron and I have decided that our honor has been satisfied," the Duke's voice sounded, causing him to stop, a long pause ensued.

"Is this true, Baron Kururugi," the Knight of One asked.

"It is," Suzaku found himself responding, recognizing the olive branch that was being offered, and gladly taking it.

"Very well then, as Master of the Field, I announce this duel as concluded."

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Cornelia stared at Suzaku and Alexander as they stepped into the office she had appropriated from the base commandant. It had only been a short time since the duel and they had gotten their Knightmare Frames back in storage.

"Shut the door," she simply stated her voice as cold as ice, as the Duke did as she ordered, before stepping beside Suzaku at attention before her. But, she could almost swear she saw the flash of a content smirk on his face before he was fully at attention.

It took every effort for her not to physically strike him; instead, she took a deep breath, attempting to calm the rage that threatened to just consume her.

"I want an explanation….now, as to what in the hell the two of you were doing."

"Sparring," the Duke replied, the smirk back.

"SHUT THE HELL UP ALEXANDER CONSTANTINE KNIGHT," she shouted, using his full name for emphasis, "If I wanted a smart-ass remark, I would ask for a village idiot to give it to me."

"Yes, Your Highness."

She massaged her temples, her eyes closing for a moment, before they snapped back open as she walked up and stabbed her finger into his chest.

"Of all the people I expected to pull a half-assed idiotic stunt, I figured you would be the last. But here I am, finding out you not only challenged Kururugi to a duel, but added media frenzy on top of it. I put you in charge of the Baron's well-being, not something as idiotic as this."

"Your Highness," Suzaku spoke up.

"YOU," her head snapped to him, leveled on him like the barrel of a VARIS rifle, "you are just as damn guilty as he is. Did it ever occur to you that maybe you should not fall for his baiting."

"I felt that I didn't have a choice."

"Of course you didn't. The Duke probably pushed all of your buttons to get you rankling for a fight."

"He didn't. He merely challenged me to a duel on the spot because he believed, rightfully so, that I didn't believe in his unit."

Her mouth dropped open, before it clicked shut audibly, before looking back towards the Duke, the smirk replaced by a grin that could only be described as the equivalent of a cat having eaten a canary.

"YOU! You played him, didn't you?"

"Me," the Duke pointed at his chest, hands than splaying out, mouth wide in mocking shock, "of course not, I wouldn't DARE, Your Highness. I am merely just your humble servant fulfilling your wishes."

She sighed; of course it was something the Duke had planned. The bastard could be so fucking Machiavellian at times. Suzaku of course looked confused by what was going on.

"Okay, plan, now," she found herself saying.

"Actually, the plan has been completed. It actually worked out even more wondrously than I could have imagined."

"Wait," Suzaku demanded, "what plan?"

"Quite simply, to increase your viability and give you a shield, Suzaku. In military circles, you are viewed by many as a fluke, that the only reason you are having your successes is because you have fought an enemy of inferior quality," a hand was held up to stifle his protest, "I know that is not true, but you are fighting against Britannian thinking and it believes in the utter superiority of Britannia, and that only incompetent commanders are the reason of the Black Knight's successes. They are both right and wrong; the Black Knights were led by a very capable Britannian, who it was, I am not sure, but I will admit, that I would be hard-pressed to beat him on the field of strategy. If whoever this Zero was was not killed, or his command staff was filled with officers of his caliber, the Battle of Tokyo would have been a Britannian rout. Of this I have no doubts."

Suzaku worked hard to hide his reaction, the fact that the Duke had been able to discern that the leader of the Black Knights as a Britannian was worrying enough, but how much longer would he be able to connect the dots and realize that not only Zero had been a Britannian, but he had been Lelouch vi Britannia. His eyes slipped to Cornelia and he could almost see her thinking the very same thing. This was something they both needed to sit down and talk about. If the Duke was able to ascertain the identity of Zero, which it seemed he might be trying to do, how many others were also doing so?

"So, Suzaku, the best way to do it is to pit you in combat against a Force Recon unit. Force Recon causes people to notice, and they are some of the best, so when you can fight a unit of that caliber to a standstill, especially one led by a Britannian noble of higher position than yourself, then that causes people to notice. And there are enough people out there in the upper echelons that knows what both Victoria and I are capable of that they will take heed when they both have this, and have me telling them, you are as good as you are."

"And by reviving the duel, and showing Suzaku's worth, you have just put nobles on notice, that challenging Suzaku could result in a challenge to a duel, because you leaked to the news that Suzaku challenged you to a duel," Cornelia realized, putting the pieces together.

"And if Kururugi can go toe-to-toe with a Force Recon unit with equipment and weapons that would likely be found on Seventh-Generation Knightmare Frames commanded by the Aggressor Captain of the Paris Invasion, do you really think any noble or unit is going to risk having him challenge them to a duel?"

"One of these days, Al, you're going create a plan so complex, you'll end up getting yourself killed."

"All more the reason to take me up on that offer Nelly."

She snorted, "One of these days Al…"

"You might take me up on it."

She looked at him for a moment, before a side of her face twitched into a smirk.

"Maybe."

The Duke bowed his head as he pumped a fist.

"Okay, so what's next," she asked.

"Well, today, I think the Baron needs to learn the art of handling the media, because I have no doubt that he probably has a backlog of interview requests."

"No, I just want to rest and see Princess Nunnally," Suzaku responded, irritably, he would not let his life be controlled by Cornelia or the Duke.

The Duke paused for a moment, before looking to Cornelia, who was looking at Suzaku with a guarded expression.

"Very well then, we'll go with that. But tomorrow Kururugi, we need to start formulating a plan, because you are now in the high-octane world of Britannian politics, and because you are who you are, you will have a bulls-eye on your back at all times, even with the defenses I am erecting for you, it might not always be enough. So tomorrow, we'll meet on the Avalon at eight a.m. sharp."

"Okay," he found himself responding grudgingly, his mind still a swirl at the storm that was going on. Just a short time ago, they were both trying to kill one another, now the Duke was doing his best to help and protect him. He was going to need to get used to this fleet-footed mind.

The Duke clapped his hands together rubbing them.

"Well then, I think I will go and handle the media then. Oh, and Kururugi, when dealing with the media, there are two words that you should memorize when you don't want to deal with them, though, I would recommend you use them sparingly at the moment."

"What are those?"

"No comment," he responded, turning towards the door, "well, wish me luck, I'll be spending the entire day on the media circuit for the poor Baron here."

"Knight," Suzaku blurted, stopping the man as he was about to open the door, "why do they call you the Salamander?"

The Duke froze at the door, his hand on the handle, before dropping to the side.

"That's one story, maybe one day; I'll share with you," he finally said, his voice seemingly aged beyond his years, "and Kururugi. When I told you, that my Knights are my castle walls?"

"Yah?"

"Sometimes, castles walls are meant to keep things in, to protect those outside," he said, before opening the door before Suzaku could follow it up, and closing it behind him.

* * *

A/N: First and foremost, this chapter is dedicated to a friend who is currently undergoing a really rough time in his life at the moment. He knows who he is.

Second, I know I am about a month late in the update, but things have been a little hectic. In fact, the time I had college off, I spent actually with friends more than anything and had no real drive to write other than in snippets. This was partially because I had a bit of a rocky time in the creative department, but for other reasons I simply wanted to hang with friends and play video games.

I'll try and get back on a schedule, but I won't hold myself to any system now, since my latest mess-up has probably jaded you guys in the update department.

And for the record, I typed probably half of this on my phone simply because the only time it seemed my brain WANTED to write, was while I was driving around. Figure that out.

Anyways, before anyone runs into a situation in which they start harping on about Original Characters, yes, they are here to stay, NO, they will not become a permanent fixture, in fact, they will start fading for the most part, and in the defense of Suzaku, he's frankly not faced any opponents who have both studied him, are properly trained and motivated to kick his ass. It seemed every single time Lelouch had him in his grasp, he let it go simply because he was planning. Fighting a well-trained Britannian unit with modifications to enhance their performance is quite different from an ad-hoc Pureblood unit led by an arguably inept by ambitious Lord Kewell who's primary focus was to kill Jeremiah. And the fights that Suzaku had issues were against the likes of the Holy Swords and the Guren.

Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed the read, and I really do hope those that read take the time to review this and give me their thoughts. If you want to PM me, my inbox is open and I respond to everyone when I can. I enjoy people's interaction, and frankly, I have actually gotten a good supporter from it, so if you want to help me, feel free and hit me up, I don't mind.

Well, with that entire diatribe out of the way. I'll see y'all around. Until my next update, that is.


	8. Tenebra

Aria Sept

**Tenebra**

"The Director will see you now."

Villetta Nu, newly minted Baron for her actions during the Black Rebellion, quickly composed herself as she stood up and headed for the door that led to the office of the Director of the Office of Secret Intelligence.

If there was anyone Britannian citizens were raised to fear, it was the OSI. They were the Emperor's private secret police and it was unwise to make yourself a target of them. Anyone that became a target had the unfortunate tendency to...disappear.

So it had been to her horror that she had received a summons not only from the OSI, but the Director of the OSI himself. There were several reasons to fear the head of the OSI even over the Emperor himself.

When Emperor Charles zi Britannia had moved against the former Emperor, it had not been a sure thing, even with the support of the military, the prospects of a quick resolution of the coup d'état were almost nonexistent. That was, until the OSI suddenly aligned itself with Charles, what was looking to be a months-long campaign had ended in a single day. It was even rumored that when Emperor Charles had entered the throne room expecting resistance, he only found men of the OSI kneeling before him, with the former Emperor's head lying at the foot of the throne.

The head of the OSI then was the same man who had now summoned her, as she took one more breath to shore her quavering resolve, and knocked on the door.

"Enter," came the response at the other end.

She calmly opened the door and entered into the spacious office, her eyes locked on to the solitary man sitting behind the desk, small novel in hand.

For all the horror stories that had permeated noble circles, Grand Duke Oscar Saint looked more like a grandfatherly teacher, complete with the short gray hair and glasses, than a man who was the axeman for the Emperor.

"Lady Nu, please sit, I will be right with you," he said through the book, single hand gesturing to the ornately lacquered chair.

There was really no option but to take it, and so Villetta took the offered chair, settling into it, noting almost immediately how hard the chair felt without any cushioning.

The Grand Duke said nothing even as Villetta felt her own thoughts flit around nervously, wondering what she had done to merit this man's attention.

The sound of a file slapping against a wooden desktop was like a gunshot, causing her to jump in her seat as her mind refocused on the man before her who opened up a file without seemingly have alerted her to the fact he had put the novel away and gone into his desk to retrieve a file.

"Villetta Nu, born a.t.b. June 1st, 1991. Parents, Sanjay and Megan Nu. Upper-level commoner, admitted into West Point on the sponsorship of Earl Cornryn in 2009, graduated eighth in a class of six hundred and twelve 2011, recruited by Margrave Jeremiah Gottwald into the 5th Regiment, K Company. Several service commendations and letters of merit. 2017, investigated in the theft of Britannian military hardware, exonerated. Sole survivor of K Company at Narita. Reported as AWOL during the Port Yokosuka incident. Resurfaced during the Battle of Tokyo, claiming to have taken," his eyes snapped to her over the rim of his glasses, "unilateral and unauthorized infiltration of the Black Knights."

He let that hover over her as his yellow eyes were locked on her own, peering into her soul in an attempt to sense deceit.

His eyes waited there a moment, her own gaze hard and unyielding even as she quailed in fear at the danger she was in, and any false move and there was no doubt in her mind she'd disappear forever.

They then returned to the folder before him as he continued.

"AWOL charges dropped upon debriefing. Inducted into Order of the Emperor and rewarded the title of Baroness for her actions, land to be determined."

He then closed the folder looking back up at her.

"Well, Miss Nu, you've created one hell of an intelligence windfall with your little impromptu dalliance into the art of spycraft and one hell of a headache for me, because you've pissed in my pond, and I don't take kindly to people pissing in my pond."

She stifled a shudder as she realized exactly what this man reminded her of. A snake. And she was unfortunate to have disturbed him and become his prey.

"So what am I to do with you," he murmured, more to himself, than to her, yet the implications were clear, as well as an opportunity offered

"Director," she said finding her voice.

"Hmm? You wanted to say something Baroness?"

"It's possible I could be an asset to you."

"Oh? Please," he motioned to her as he leaned back in his chair, "do go on."

_Well Villetta, you've already dug your grave, now to try and avoid being put into it._

"You are right in that I have no experience in the art of espionage, however, do my actions not prove of my capability? If anything I can be an asset to you by having myself placed under your auspices. I've shown my worth by infiltrating the Black Knights and providing the data I have."

The Director simply looked her over for a long time, before reaching down to his desk again, the sound a drawer being opened audible before the Grand Duke came back up with another file.

"Did you know that at one point I was simply a lowly data analyst," he asked conversationally, "so beneath the realm of contempt I was merely an insect to be quashed should I step out of line or foul up? Or maybe even be a scapegoat at my bosses' convenience."

"I did not know that My Lord."

"Not many do," the Director replied a decidedly ungrandfatherly smirk populated his features, "many of those that did are dead."

She kept her features as composed as possible, despite the very animalistic urge to flee.

"What I learned as an analyst is that you must be both thorough in your diagnosis of the situation as well as hold a complete picture in order to survive. But perhaps, the most important lesson I have ever learned was that sometimes the best action to take is inaction. You're sorely mistaken if you think the lack of breakthroughs until your little display is due to a lack of successes in infiltrating, Chigusa."

The floor was dropping out from beneath her even as she fought to control her reaction.

"Excuse me," she bit out.

The Director merely opened up the folder.

"I have someone in the upper echelons of the Black Knights reporting to me. They noted a change in Kaname Ohgi's behaviors and investigated. Imagine their surprise to find you involved with an Eleven."

It took every effort for her to breathe as she stared at the Director. Her entire world was crashing down in front of her very eyes. He KNEW.

"Would you care to change your story?"

"No," she responded it would do no good for her to change her story, if she had any chance; she would need to double down. It all amounted to her word against whoever this source was within the Black Knights.

He merely looked at her for a long moment, before closing the folder back up.

"Well done."

"Excuse me," she asked.

"You passed the test, Baroness," the Grand Duke said, clasping his hands on the desk now, "to show a level of composure and control as you have here, as well as the capability for independent action is what we strive for here at the OSI."

"I'm at a loss here, My Lord."

The Director's warm smile was back, yet for Villetta there could never be any warmth when faced with the calculating predator wearing the mask of a human being.

"In many ways the OSI is an organization that looks for talent in a variety of places, actively recruiting those who show a certain...affinity for our type of work. In your case, we were somewhat taken aback at someone of your background actually being capable of our art. As such, it was determined to actively recruit you, but I prefer to have a hands-on approach to all recruits. That is why you are here."

"I see..."

"Come now Baroness, did you really think I was going to do something such as liquidating you just after you were inducted into the Order of the Emperor?"

"It had crossed my mind," she admitted, still on guard everything was bouncing all over the place, it was as if the Grand Duke kept the ground beneath her perpetually loose so she could not gain an adequate mental footing.

The Duke looked at her for a moment, before standing up.

"Come with me Baroness."

Villetta could only obey the command veiled within a request as she followed the dapper-looking old man, a book shelf slid out of their way to reveal an open elevator door. They then both entered it.

"The Emperor appoints only twelve Grand Dukes at any time," the Director said, "and those that are appointed are usually the best and most loyal of subordinates to the Emperor. It would be unbecoming of my position if I were to waste talent such as yours without good reason. Basement."

The doors to the elevator closed and started its descent.

"That is why I am placing you in charge of our Black Knight department. Your job will be to hunt down and liquidate the Black Knight's remaining forces and support structure. It would only be fair for you to finish what you gained nobility for, don't you agree?"

She could only reply in the affirmative as the elevator came to a stop with a ding.

"Excellent, if you would follow me, I thought I should give you the first break in your job."

He then led her into a relatively well lit corridor with several doors on either side.

Almost instinctively her nose crinkled to the strong smell of antiseptics even as her eyes traveled to a lone officer sitting at a duty desk.

"Morning Jeremy," the Director stated, leading her to the desk and writing on a board, "how are the kids doing?"

"Doing well Director, Archibald just got accepted into the Royal Military Academy."

"He'll do you proud," the Director responded, "Jeremy, this is Miss Nu, head of the Black Knight Division."

"Miss Nu, please just sign yourself in. I'll then issue you a guest pass until the finalized paperwork comes through and then we'll chip you."

Villetta signed herself in before looking up at the mention of the word "chip".

"All department heads and members of the staff here at The Resort are issued chips that automatically log us in, tied with handwriting recognition systems in that board that confirm our identities," the Director stated, "it's for security and ease of access."

She merely nodded, her mind grasping the implications of being "chipped", but at the same time, the implications of the location, the smell, and the obviously tongue-in-cheek name for this location.

_My God_, she thought in horror, _this is Hotel Pendragon. I can't believe it, it actually exists, and it's not an urban legend._

There was good reason for fear. When people disappeared, it was always said before they truly disappeared for good, those that were valuable enough got a stay at the Hotel Pendragon, the secret torture facility that the OSI was rumored to run. Of course, that was all legend….

"This way Miss Nu," the Director interrupted her thinking leading her along down the corridor.

"When you broke the information to military intelligence we chose to make a move against the main principals of the Black Knights. Unfortunately, we had little success in rolling them up."

They came to a stop at single door; the Grand Duke rapped his knuckle lightly upon the door before opening it.

Sitting there in a chair in the middle of the room was a naked man. The only discernible features to him was the disheveled gray hair and beard, now with blood streaked in it. All over his body were numerous bruises where precise blows had been rained upon the subject to maximize pain.

"Miss Reese, how is our guest doing today?"

Villetta followed the gaze of the Director to a corner where a svelte young woman with shoulder-length styled brown hair and dressed in casual clothing was sampling an apple, taking a large bite out of it with an audible crunch.

The woman slowly chewed it with a contemplative look, before swallowing it.

"Mister Munakata has been quite the chattering bird this morning," the woman said, "of course I had to sweeten the pot a deal."

"The file?"

She picked up a file and tossed it to the Director who began thumbing through it.

"Much of it is as we thought," the Director sighed, before handing Villetta the file allowing her to glace through it, "and much of it confirms the information you gleaned."

"So this is a member of the Kyoto House?"

"Indeed," Miss Reese said, discarding the apple and wiping her hands before offering one, "Kara Reese."

"Villetta Nu," the dark-skinned noble replied numbly, everything was going too fast for her to even keep up, now it seemed she was just along for the ride.

"About Mister Munakata, is he ready for sanctioning?"

"Let's find out."

"Hold on, Miss Reese, I think Miss Nu would be interested in your...technique."

"Has the Director cleared it?"

_Director? Director of what_, Villetta thought even as she now paid rapt attention.

"You're going to be assigned to assist Miss Nu in her efforts to roll up the Black Knights. The Director has condoned it."

"If the Director allows it," the woman said, and suddenly, her black eye flashed with a familiar reddish-purple tinted emblem, the emblem of something that jogged a memory of that boy from Shinjuku.

"You've seen this before, haven't you," Kara asked, surprise lacing her tone as she looked Villetta over once.

Villetta could only nod.

"The leader of the Black Knights had that same thing when he used it on me to take my Sutherland at Shinjuku."

"So you know the true identity of Zero and kept it silent. Very good," the Director said with approval, "Miss Reese, you may continue."

"Right," she then turned to the unconscious Tousai Munakata, lightly slapping his face and causing him to rouse.

"Rise and shine, Tousai," she said, "how's my favorite Eleven."

The man's eyes were dull, Villetta realized, a result of a man broken by means other than just physical.

Yet there was a fire in them as he suddenly spit in her face, a giant glob of saliva landing on the bridge of her nose.

She said nothing as she drew herself back.

"And you fashion yourself as a gentlemen," she said wiping the spit away with her hand and flinging it to the floor, before backhanding the Eleven across the face, the man's head recoiling as she sat herself down on his lap.

"Dear Tousai, trying to act like a man when in reality you're nothing more than just a little boy who no longer has his toys.

Her hand caressed his face, before her other hand drove itself right into his kidney, causing him to gasp in pain.

"If you act like a gentleman I'll reward you."

A low dry raspy laugh sounded from the shell of a man.

"Say what you will, witch, I'm already a dead man."

"Awww, but it's a difference in how you will die," she leaned in to his ear like a lover, "you would be astounded what modern medical technology can do for death," she then nibbled his ear, causing Villetta to shudder in revulsion at the blatantly sexual act.

"Be a good boy and I'll make it quick," her eye flashed in the Geass emblem, "have you told me everything concerning the Black Knights."

"No."

She caressed his face again, before leaning in and giving him a deep kiss, extricating herself while releasing his lower lip from her teeth and walking over to Villetta and the Director.

"That's everything," she said, a wicked smile on her face as her fingers ghosted over her lips, "he's ready for sanctioning."

The Director nodded, as Kara walked over to the table she had been sitting on and opened a case to reveal a pistol and a suppressor. She took both instruments out and screwed the suppressor on, before walking over to Munakata leveling it on him.

"Wait," the Director commanded, "let Miss Nu sanction him."

Kara looked back, a flash of petulance crossing her features before she walked over to Villetta, handing her the gun.

For a trained killer like her, the gun felt so heavy. She was trained to kill those who fought against Britannia, but it was an entirely different thing looking at this defenseless man before her, someone who had been rendered unto nothing. This wasn't what she was trained for. She wasn't an executioner.

"What's the matter Baroness," Kara asked, challenge in her tone.

"Baroness," the Director intoned, "I understand you were trained to only shoot armed enemy combatants. But if you are going to lead agents into the field, you need to prove to me you are willing to dirty your hands. This is no longer a black-and-white world, but totally gray. Prove yourself, not just to me, but your subordinate."

_What can I do_, she thought looking at the gun in her hand, then to the bound man past Kara, _what can I say?_

But there wasn't anything she could do she realized, this was a test by an agency that was established upon paranoia, she either had to fulfill the order or find herself in the same position as the Eleven, being tortured for information before being discarded.

She had viewed her actions as one to advance her beyond the cage of failures that she had suffered, but instead now she was an even more dangerous cage where death was the punishment instead of dishonor. A new and even more dangerous game that she was unsure she could survive.

_But I have to; I haven't done all of this only for this to be the end._

Her hand tightened around the grip of the gun as she walked over to Tousai Munakata, brought it up to his face and pulled the trigger three times. Each shot a nail on the coffin of her humanity.

She quelled the churning sensation in her stomach at the sight of bone and brain matter splashed on the wall and floor like the graffiti of a psycho as she turned to the glowing approval of Kara Stanton and the extended hand of the Director who wore a welcoming smile, which she took in with her cold and clammy hand.

"Welcome to the OSI, Baroness. We expect great things from you."

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This, this was how a Knightmare Frame hangar should be, Lloyd thought with a sense of amazement at the busy but relatively quiet hustle being undertaken by the various mechanics and technicians as they were rapidly tearing apart the Gloucesters of the Knights of Idris.

But that wasn't the reason why he was here, as he only noted that the three that he had seen in battle were the only ones that were here. The fourth and source of his curiosity after a rage bender was nowhere to be seen.

"Hey," one of the mechanics suddenly yelled, causing the Earl's head to snap to the source, where a technician standing on the cockpit of the Duke of New Haven's Gloucester, the massive sword still sticking out of it , "you looking for the Queen Vee?"

"If you mean Baroness Harrington, then yes," he raised his voice so the technician could hear him.

"She's in The Cave," the technician said, pointing towards a door to the back of the hangar.

Lloyd merely made a thumb up before heading towards the door, emblazoned with the title "The Cave" up over the top. He took one more look over the door, before opening it, and slipping into darkness.

At least, initially, it was dark, as his eyes adjusted the low light of the room. He quietly acclimated himself before moving further in to the large source of light that bathed much of the room, and allowed him a glimpse in the shadows of a Knightmare Frame and a large rifle on a cradle.

Yet like a moth to a flame, he was drawn to the light as he caught Victoria Harrington sitting at a chair in front of what looked like a large digital stationary, as various different graphics were displayed in front of her.

He was about to announce his presence to the woman whose back was to him, her long black hair given an otherworldly green glow from the various lights and displays, before the words caught in his throat as he spied a large blade being held up in her right hand as she brought it up and behind her, her left hand catching the long voluminous hair that reached to the ground. With one sharp motion, the blade cut through the hair, and what had been a length of hair only seen in fantasy story, was chopped down to her shoulders, the rest falling to the ground behind her.

It was a spectacular sight, as his eyes caught on to the realization that she was not wearing a shirt, but only a sports bra as he caught a glimpse of what looked like a tattoo on her right shoulder. He couldn't make it out at this distance, but it took up the entire shoulder.

Then it was gone as a shirt was brought over it, and she pulled her hair from under the shirt and back over, before she tapped a console causing the lights to power on, flooding it in light and causing his eyes to clench shut at the sudden onslaught.

"Earl Asplund, to what do I owe the honor? Surely to chew me out over the damage I caused to your Lancelot."

"I would be lying if I wasn't angry at what you did to my Lancelot," the Earl said in annoyance, "but I cannot help but admire your Knightmare and its capabilities."

She glanced up at the Knightmare that he was looking at. It was in the same matte-black finish that seemed that the other Knights of Idris had, but that was where all commonality ended. In fact, while the other Knights of Idris used Gloucesters as obvious frames for their modifications, the Knightmare seemed closer to the Lancelot than any Gloucester, but the other oddity was that in addition to the non-standard angular design was the fact that it seemed to shimmer in the light.

"You mean the Medusa," she asked, earning a nod from Lloyd, who noted the odd choice of title for a Knightmare, almost every single Knightmare design that existed was either based upon an Arthurian hero or a placed of their origin homeland, to be named after an Ancient Grecian monster was either a deliberate choice, or it was for some other reason.

"Wait," Lloyd stated, adjusting his glasses a moment as a flash of recognition hit him. The shimmering was actually not any type of personal scheme; it was part of the design, "is that what I think it is?"

"If you are thinking it's metamaterial, then yes, that is what it is," she said.

"I didn't even know there was a breakthrough, when did it happen," Lloyd said in awe, metamaterial was a serious field that had been considered in the realm of optical camouflage, but it had never really gotten off the ground, he knew there were some scientists persisting in that field of work, but nothing near the level of a working model, yet here it was.

"Just after we got back from Area 18," Vic said, the familiar sound of a lighter being opened causing Lloyd to look back at her, as she held a cigarette firmly in her lips, she looked at him for a, recognizing the look of a fellow smoker, she held out the pack to him, which Lloyd walked over and took the cigarette.

It wasn't very often that he had an opportunity such as this; Cecile hated it when he smoked anywhere, always claiming that the smell of smoke on his clothes made her sick.

She held up the lit lighter to Lloyd's cigarette, lighting his and allowing him to take a drag, and immediately choked on it.

"Not your thing," she asked.

Lloyd shook his head, coughing and hacking, slowly recovering from the drag of the foreign cigarette.

"What is this?"

"It's a new type of cigarettes that are all the rave in New Haven. Got the nicotine kick and tobacco taste, but if you want all the nasty side-effects, you are sorely out of luck. Not very popular outside because too many people would lose money if these things became popular Empire wide."

The Earl looked at the cigarette again, as the Baroness lit hers up, taking a drag of it, the clink of the lighter being shut like a signal for the continuation.

"I think I prefer cancer in my sticks."

She merely smiled in response as she looked back to the Medusa.

"To each their own," she said.

"You were saying about the Medusa?"

"There isn't much to it. With this new assignment, it will be sent back to Yale to be torn apart," she said, a bit of loss edging into her tone, "no one up in the powers-that-be want a Missing anywhere near them and the Meddy just won't be able to keep up with the Vincent, without a total revamping. I've made a few queries and I can get it done, but, it doesn't matter unless Baron Kururugi allows it.

He could relate to that feeling. It was almost the feeling that he had when faced with the prospect of that woman developing something that could cause his Lancelot problems. That was what had driven him to quickly pushing out the Conquista. Yet, there had been those nightmarish times when he had worried there would be no possibility of saving the Lancelot's design as the newer designs started appearing on the drawing board.

"Onward marches progress. I'll see what I can do on my end," the Earl found himself saying, earning a grateful glance from the Baroness.

"I was curious on a few things," Lloyd added on, "Cecile said that you were mounting electronic warfare equipment."

"Oh," that," she said, shaking her head, "the Duke likes controlling the battlefield on almost every aspect, since the Meddy served as a long-range support unit, he had me equipped with EW pods, the mating was a pain and took me the better part of a couple days, but I got it done."

"Uh huh," the Earl said, stubbing out the cigarette after taking one final drag from it, noting now that he had adapted to it, it actually seemed rather pleasant. Maybe he was better off trying to steal a few the next time he had an opportunity.

"You're more interested in the Caliburn, aren't you," she asked.

"Is that what you call it," Lloyd asked, as he watched the woman walk over to the cradle and clambered up on top of it

She motioned him to follow her, leading her back to the board, placing her hand in it, the various displays being a screensaver as it went to a desktop, and with a few taps of her fingers, the object in question was brought up in a window, allowing Lloyd to look over the schematics.

Cupping his chin in thought as the schematics were thrown through a display pattern, tearing it apart and putting it back together, even as he tried to keep his stunned amazement off his face as he resisted the urge to facepalm at the simplicity of the solution.

"Did you design this," he found himself asking as he traced his fingers over it in recognition of the elegance of the design, all of his problems from the original VARIS were solved right in front of him.

"Most of it," she admitted from the distance, "I had some help from some friends at Yale, but it was more on the final product."

"Why didn't I think of that," Lloyd exclaimed looking over the breakdown of the rifle, "instead of building a coolant system you just installed an injection system and a release port for the trapped gasses."

"Most of the rifle consists of off-the-shelf components from the Challenger III's gun system, but the rails themselves are my creation along with the coolant clip system and all of the ammunition types."

She then motioned to the wall to the left, where Lloyd could see several shells, each with a different color band.

"I take it you powered it with Sakuradite," he asked, his eyes narrowed on a particular shell, something gnawing at him.

"It's a smaller version of the Yggdrasil drive, gives one heck of an instantaneous output when powered up, but it only lasts about four or five shots before the filler needs to be replaced," she replied as the Earl walked over to a certain round of ammunition, his eyes locked onto the pink tip.

That's Sakuradite, he realized, she's actually tipping rounds with Sakuradite. How did she get it stable enough to mount on ammunition?

"Blew up seventeen gun tubes before we got the stabilization ratio right," she stated, observing his gaze, "plenty of long nights of me sitting at this board trying to figure out what I did wrong."

Lloyd watched her eyes travel to the rifle on the cradle.

"It's a shame all of those hours are going to waste," she said wistfully.

"It's too heavy for the Vincent, isn't it," Lloyd knew the answer right away.

"If I keep it, the mobility would pretty much be shot when using the Float System. I won't be able to keep up with the rest of the unit. I've tried miniaturizing the entire system but I keep running into issues concerning matching the overall output and power of the original."

Lloyd adjusted his glasses, a knowing smile on his face.

"Have you tried using the VARIS as a template?"

"The size of the cooling mechanism wouldn't compensate for the increase in the thermal conver-," she trailed off, the gears obviously grinding in her head as she placed the cigarette back in her mouth, puffing away at it.

"You don't have an Yggdrasil core on the VARIS, do you?"

"No, but all you would have to do is reinforce the rails and figure out how to compensate for the increased heat. But you already have the solution to that, don't you?"

The Baroness snarled something in a language that while Lloyd didn't understand what it was, he understood the intent of it.

"Why didn't I see it, of course, I can downsize the rounds with the VARIS base to maybe seventy-six mike...course that will cause issues in supply but it'd be less energy- and weight-intensive than the one-twenty..."

This was obviously someone after his own heart, Lloyd realized as she watched her work out the issue in front of him. The fact that she was obviously quite intelligent caused another thought to flit into his own mind.

"Baroness, may I ask you a question?"

She stopped midsentence to look at him.

"Go ahead."

"You're obviously wildly intelligent, why are you here, in this unit?"

She tilted her head slightly looking at him for a few moments, before taking one last drag from the cigarette before viciously stubbing it out, she seemed to contemplate grabbing another one, but decided against it.

"Long story short, my parents wanted a prim and proper princess who would marry up, spread her legs, please her prince, and pop out heirs," she snorted in bitter amusement, "I disagreed with them, ran away and joined the military."

Lloyd grimaced. While he was not a reformist, he was more egalitarian than many of his peers, so stories of these levels of familial misogyny irked him, not only because he didn't care for it, but he found it to be an utter waste traditionalists still dallied in. There were too many intelligent women out there caged into a useless and old-fashioned custom.

"Yet you're a Baroness now..."

She smiled wanly.

"You can blame the Duke for that. He took me under his wing at the Yale Academy, he was doing a stint there at his father's behest, when he formed the Knights of Idris, and he took me with him."

Shrugging she turned back to the drawing board.

"When we came back, I don't know what really happened. Al disappeared for a couple days, next thing I know, my parents show up at my doorstep begging forgiveness and the title of the Barony. I don't know what Al did, but I actually talk again with my parents every once in awhile, I think they are proud of me. Of course, I can't run my Barony at the moment, so one of the Duke's people is running it for me until I want to take it run it."

"How...nice of him," the Earl said.

"Oh, I know he wants to align my Barony with his reformist ideologies, but he has my blessing. Something needs to change; it might not be in my life that I see it, but Britannia needs to change, it was a lot easier a hundred and fifty, let alone, twenty years ago, to impose our will upon our enemy. But now, events like the Black Knight Rebellion are going to become more commonplace as Numbers recognize we can't feasibly be everywhere and stamp out every single insurrection. Imagine if Areas start realizing that and coordinate a Britannian-wide revolt."

"Then we would be forced to give up several Areas while we reorganize. But we would take them back just as easily."

"And what if we can't," she asked, "you once said in a seminar that eventually the technology of our enemies will outstrip our ability to maintain our hold on our territories. It's partially the reason you pursued the Lancelot, to try and push that knife's edge back."

"I said that?"

"June 17th a.t.b. 2016 at the MacLeon Conference, you were the guest speaker."

"I don't recall you being there."

"I was there on request as an aide to Earl Anders."

Lloyd thought for a moment before an image a woman dressed in a women's business suit with brown hair and glasses flashed in his mind.

"You had green eyes then," he mused.

"I just got off a plane from Area 18. Besides, it was easier to keep the contacts in than deal with...discussion about my genetics."

Lloyd nodded slowly; it was still a big deal in Britannia if someone had any type of genetic mutation. Those that did had to deal with discrimination and prejudice. It wasn't as bad now, but there were still people who looked down on those people.

"So," he said rubbing his hands together, "how about I give you a hand with that redesign, in return, you show me those modifications you made to the Gloucesters, I think you might have hit on something I could use for the Lancelot."

She looked at him for a short time before smiling and gesturing to a rolling chair in the corner.

"You got yourself a deal."

00000000000000000000000

"Tohdoh, thank you for coming."

"What did you want to talk about Zero," Kyoshiro Tohdoh asked gruffly, disciplining himself from the exhaustion that was gnawing at the edge of his mind, lulling him to rest again.

"It's about Kallen. I'd like a little of your perspective. Just give me a moment."

He then motioned to a chair, focused on the computer screen before him as he tapped away at it.

He then spun around in the chair.

"I'm sorry about that was confirming something about India that I needed to know."

"Care to share what you're planning?"

"Nothing concrete yet."

Tohdoh looked over the leader with suspicious eyes, noting how energetic he seemed despite the ungodly hour in which he was being summoned.

"Have you slept yet," he asked incredulously.

"Haven't felt the need to," Lelouch replies, a little surprised by the question, before glancing back at the clock.

"Of course," he said a bit more levelly, "I'm still learning this entire immortality thing on the fly. So I guess I am testing out the limitations and advantages it offers. But enough of that. Kallen. As loathe as I am to admit it, my methods may be inadequate in conveying to her the lessons I wish to educate her on."

"And how did you come to that conclusion concerning Kouzuki?"

"Call it a hunch," Lelouch replied.

Tohdoh's eyes darted to the chessboard.

_More like you think chess gave you an insight into her_, Tohdoh thought irritably, catching himself before Zero could detect it.

That was one thing he never could understand with Britannians: the obsessive fixation on chess. Oh, he knew the argument, that chess both could be some kind of magical bullet for expanding the capability and at the same time determined the prowess of the players.

He could see maybe how chess could allow someone an insight to the character of a player. But so could a lot of things, like art.

It was unadulteratedly fantastical bullshit that chess could somehow create great strategists. It was a game and not some philosopher's stone of strategists that made them brilliant. Just like shogi, it was a game.

Truth be told, he wasn't stunned the great Lelouch vi Britannia couldn't get through to Kallen Kouzuki. He was approaching it completely like a Britannian noble would, and when was the last time a noble taught anything?

He snorted, earning a questioning look from Zero, those amethyst eyes piercing him. A part of him was unnerved, the mystical side of him still grappling with the fact that the teen before him would never age while he would grow old and grey, that is unless he was killed in action. He would easily outlive them all.

He also wondered exactly what went on in his head because of it.

"A thought occurred to me Zero. Has it occurred to you that maybe chess is not the answer you're looking for?"

He could tell he hit a nerve with Zero; it wasn't that hard to miss now that he wasn't wearing a mask. The lip drawn into a slight scowl and a minute narrowing of the eyes, they were rather easy tells.

He's frustrated but he's trying his best to mask it. I wonder if that was how I looked like when I felt Suzaku didn't meet my expectations.

"I don't think Kouzuki is one of those people you can teach the methodology of command, Zero. Especially something off a chessboard."

"That's not-"

"I wasn't finished Zero. You wanted my opinion, then let me give it to you, warts and all."

He left the challenge hanging in the air for a few moments those eyes now unreadable, no, fathomless. Again he found himself wondering what was going on in Zero's head.

Zero merely gave a small nod, indicating for him to continue.

"I don't disagree that she has the capacity to be what you claim she can be. But some of the best leaders weren't taught Zero; they felt their way into command. During Japan's Sengoku period, many of the daimyos were not classically trained strategists, they had mentors of course but that didn't suggest competency at all. In fact, a sterling example would be the man who set the stage for Japan's eventual unification."

"Nobunaga Oda."

"Indeed, he was called the Fool of Owari for a reason. But when he lost someone valuable he changed into what history records him now."

"So you're saying Kallen is..."

"I'm saying this for comparison," Tohdoh replied, "but for Kouzuki, nothing will click for her until she's in the middle of all of it."

A cold silence descended upon the two as Zero seemed to retreat deeper into his thoughts, but the lack of any rebuttal was a good indicator to keep going.

00000000000000000000000

"You know for all the reverence the Japanese have for Nobunaga, I wonder what they would say to the fact that he was a lot like Charles and you, including having a contract with me," a bored voice mused in Lelouch's head, causing him to nearly jump out of his skin at the all-too-familiar voice of a certain formerly immortal witch, "he even had your egotistical drive for being right."

"C.C.!"

"The one and only. Oops, I mean, Lelouch," she drew her voice out like one would hear from a ghost, "Lelouch...I'm haunting you."

"But how?!"

"Don't ask me, here I was looking forward being free of all of this, but look at where I am," she responded flippantly.

This was completely unexpected development. Part of him was glad to hear from her again, but at the same time he was leery, the fact that C.C. was somehow back and talking to him in his head what else could she do.

"Don't have to worry too much; hanging around in your head is one of the most depressing experiences anyone can ask for. I actually prefer floating in the ether to hanging on your shoulder and being a little angel whispering in your ear…"

"You can read my mind?!"

"...or was it a demon. Anyways, you'd be surprised what I can do now," she said, he could almost taste the amusement, "I wonder what you'd say to what Tamaki's dreaming about. Hint, it involves you."

Lelouch repressed a shudder; the witch could still torment him from beyond the grave.

"You said Nobunaga had Geass," he quickly decided to change subjects before C.C. made him into a mental case, "what was it?"

"What do you think? The Power of Absolute Chaos. Pity Mitsuhide killed him at Honnoji. That was the closest I got until you succeeded."

That was an interesting fact that he hadn't known before about the immortal witch, but before he could pursue it Tohdoh was speaking again.

"Because I am who I am now because of Itsukushima. I owe everything to that event, including my enlightenment," Tohdoh interrupted his thoughts.

00000000000000000000000

This were some things Tohdoh was loathe to discuss with anyone. In fact, only Katase knew the truth of Itsukushima. That Itsukushima was a fluke of monumental proportions, and that Captain Kyoshiro Tohdoh was only a beneficiary of circumstances in his favor.

"I was the ranking officer of what was left of the armored division," Tohdoh said quietly, remembering the desperation of the time, "After Hiroshima was razed by Britannia, most of the remnants of the Sixth Corps were fleeing anywhere they could and luckily a lot of them ended up at Itsukushima where I decided to make a last stand. Most of our vehicles were running out of fuel and ammunition."

He took a deep breath closing his eyes, imagining that hellish battlefield again.

"I had all of our tanks dug into defilades in the hills surrounding the central plain; there were only two routes of access they could take. Each unit was given the last of our ammo from the ammo trains. Our AFVs were topped off with all the gas we could siphon from the tanks and were tasked to be the bait and skirmishers. They knew they were going to be the first to die, but if they could help take down even one of seemingly invincible Britannian Knightmares that had been routing us in each and every fight then they were willing to set up the shots for our tanks."

He opened his eyes back to watch Zero who seemed at least somewhat entranced by the story.

"All really basic tactics, but it was a result of cold recognition. I didn't want to waste men, but this waste might allow us to at least bleed the Britannians. I always thought I knew what we called the calculus of warfare, but I got to see it firsthand that day. But there were two things that won us the day."

"And those were?"

"The Britannian commander's hubris...and the weather."

He could only smile wanly at the memory now, of broken Glasgows and wrecked Challenger tanks, an altogether different reaction from his younger self who had been just as exuberant for the victory as his comrades.

"I think in the rush to introduce the Glasgows, they overlooked the issue of the pressure that is put in the ground by it, they solved it in later models of the Glasgow and beyond, but for the terrain of Itsukushima, the rain that hit was suitable to turn the ground into a deep muck that was impassable to anything but the AFVs. And the Britannian Division commander charged right into a shooting gallery. Of course, we took severe losses as well? But the difference was we wiped them out before they could us. Before that battle, all I had was simulations, books, and theory. After that, well," he gave a near imperceptible shrug, "if you want Kouzuki to thrive, she needs to be in the heat of battle where it's sink or swim."

Zero looked at him for a long time, before breaking out in the kind a smile that gave Tohdoh chills, if he wished to admit it.

"If that's the case, then I think we can work with that. Thank you, Tohdoh, I think I'll need your help for the solution I have, but I'll get back to you once I finalize it."

"Care to share?"

"Oh nothing, just the crash education of Kallen, emphasis on crash."

00000000000000000000000

He was back in a tank, his mind groggily registered as his eyes fought to open.

_It had been how long? A day? Three days, since I had sworn an oath of loyalty to Zer- No, do not call my Lord by that foul name, he is Lelouch vi Britannia, 17th Prince of the Britannia Empire, son of Empress Marianne, the woman I have admired and loved unconditionally._

His eyes snapped open, through the greenish-yellow liquid he took in his surroundings.

And even I am to go through hell itself; I will serve My Lord to the fullest extent, exempting not even my life.

So where am I, he thought as he tried to recall what had happened, only to come back blank after a group of troops had ambushed him and incapacitated him. The only thing he recalled was that they all wore black.

It was then through the murkiness of the tank that he spotted two figures stopping in front of the tank. One was wearing robes and a shroud over his head, the only thing he could make out was the white expressionless mask worn on the face.

The other one looked no older than a child, dressed in a type of black regalia almost similar to Britannian royalty.

Yet even he could make out the eyes now, and his skin crawled. There was an otherworldly look to them that both mesmerized and horrified him, as if he was looking into an unfathomable abyss and it stared back at him, daring him to blink so it can swallow him whole.

"Margrave Jeremiah, it is good to see you awake," the boy began talking, his tank allowing him to hear it clearly.

"Where am I," he asked.

"We'll get to that soon enough. I have a few questions for you before I answer that. First, can you confirm the death of Zero, also known as Lelouch vi Britannia?"

It was almost instantaneous his response he had already prepared himself for that question.

"Yes. I can confirm based upon observations of his subordinate's reaction as she carried him from the ruins?"

"And you chose not to engage why?"

"Shock. I recognized who Zero was and also his subordinate seemed further on guard for any intrusion. Since Zero was dead I believed it more prudent to observe, my goal of seeing Zero dead was achieved."

"I see," the boy replied, "I am V.V. and my subordinate here is the Cardinal. You can say that we've come to see what progress has been made in Code R and suffice to say; I am pleased with the breakthroughs Bartley has made in regards to you. That's partially why I am here."

"And the other?"

"I am the Geass Directorate," he stated bluntly, "and since I have paid for your survival well," he gave a creep smile, "I guess you could say I own you Margrave. That's why I'm here; I'm going to make you an offer in exchange for your freedom. Serve me as my executioner. Accept it, and you get to leave this room, turn it down...well," the creepy smile turned to a toothy grin, "the scientists here get an excellent test subject to further their work on."  
_  
This is the group My Lord was referring to when he sent me on this task. The group behind Geass, it is just my luck that it was this easy. My Lord must have known they would seek me out to recruit. I can fulfill his wishes here.  
_  
"My Lord V.V.," Jeremiah said through his mask, "how might I serve you?"

00000000000000000000000

It was certainly different for Suzaku, that for the first time in a good while he was allowed to simple step back away from the furious pace in which he had scrambled since Euphie's death, it was almost utterly foreign.

Yet here he was alone in his thoughts as he watched Nunnally being guided through the Aries Garden by a surprisingly smiling Yuki who was idly chatting with Nunnally.

That in and of itself was an entirely different scene from the quiet and constantly serious shell put up by her at will. Why she put up that shell? What was underneath it?

He shook his head and took the tea off the saucer and sipped it.

There were more pressing concerns that worried him, just something that he couldn't get out of his mind.

Does the Duke know who Zero was, was that question. It almost seemed impossible, but there was an almost sure arrogance to the tone when he reviewed the Lancelot's battle recorder. Tie in the fact that the transmission was not in any of the media recordings meant it was meant solely for him.

So was he digging, or had he already figured it out. And if so, if the Duke could figure it out whom else already had?! Too many people would focus their hatred on Nunnally if it ever came out...he could not let Nunnally end up like Euphie.

"It's not often that I say this, but I was wrong Kururugi. You were right in stepping in for that servant," Cornelia stated, interrupting his thoughts, "this is the first time I've seen Nunnally genuinely smile."

"I didn't know Yuki had it in her, to be honest."

"Well, it's good to see her laugh," she then refocused on Suzaku beside her, "what is it that you urgently wanted to talk to me about?"

Suzaku placed the tea saucer down on the rail before glancing around one more time and reaching into his pocket. Extracting a recorder, he pressed the play button.

"I find myself confused Kururugi. You fight for Britannia, yet you abhor the tactics and techniques practiced by Zero, who was a slave to Britannian psychology because he was Britannian."

He then stopped it, focused on Cornelia's narrowed expression and tightened facial features.

"Is it possible he's figured out about Lelouch?"

"It's...possible? Al was always one of those people who could pick the most random of battle data out of thin air and use it to win battles. It's possible he was also fishing for information."

"You trust him?"

"Implicitly. The fact that he's not using that information at this time..."

She bit her lip in quiet contemplation, this was just what she needed, the Duke was curious about Zero, which meant he was most definitely fishing them. And it he figured out and the Emperor found out that of all people, a reformist had figured out that Britannia's largest internal threat in decades had been a royal.

_Nunnally_.

"I'll deal with him. The Duke knows to be discreet when I ask him. He's invested too much time in cultivating me as a friend and ally to risk getting on my wrong side."

She noted Suzaku's surprised expression that she chuckled.

"Don't get it wrong, he's still a good friend, but he would be an idiot to not recognize the advantages of that friendship. I'm honestly surprised he has never tried to cash in on it though."

"And what then?"

Cornelia said nothing as she looked back out towards Nunnally who was feeling a flower that Yuki was holding to her, a look of intent focus on her features.

She reached into her pocket and slid out a small sheet of paper and placed it before Suzaku, his eyes widening in response at the sketched image upon it.

"You recognize this," she asked quietly.

Suzaku nodded, not trusting himself to say anything.

"Lelouch had it, didn't he?"

"Yeah."

* * *

"I don't know what it is, but there have been too many coincidences of unexplainable events revolving around him. All I know is that one second, I'm looking him in the eye, seeing that, the next he's walking away, and I don't know what went on."

She slowly pulled the paper away and slipped it into her pocket.

"Whatever it is...I think it has something to do with what happened with Euphemia. And I'm going to find out what it is and clear her name. That's the what then."

A/N: Well, another one down. Needless to say there has been some lessay rehashing of the overall Britannian hierarchy system. I'll probably go into more detail about the overall societal structure when I actually sit down and am ready to hash everything.

I would like to say that the overall hope is that I can go back to churning out a chapter every week or two, considering almost all the writing you have seen here was done over a phone while at work. So if there are some errors, I apologize in advance.

I would like to also note that C.C.'s reappearance was planned further into what I am currently referring to as the "India Arc", but there was just a perfect opening for C.C. to just troll Lelouch it was too hard to pass up. For now, why C.C. is back is a mystery, I'll leave you guys to try and figure out what her role is.

Next item on the list, after Aria Dix, I will be taking a small hiatus to do a revamping of the overall chapters. This includes fine-tuning all of the chapters through grammar, possible plotholes, and other details. When I post Aria Onze, that will the time for you to go and reacquaint yourself with the previous material.

I would like to say thank you for all the reviews, I'd love to see more, because they both give me a sounding board to tell me if I'm going in the right direction, as well in some cases actually give me some ideas for the future. Please keep on reviewing; I appreciate each and every one of them. I'd love to have those guests get their own accounts so I can communicate with them if they have questions or even just generally chat. For the guests that posted that I cannot respond to, I'll just make it a point to respond here.

For **alex 1/11/13 . chapter 7**: I guess I will have to be guilty of a handwave here. But, when you get down to it, there is too much combat material out there for any good veteran to realize exactly what Suzaku's strengths are. You actually hit it on the head, if you notice; every single engagement during the duel, with the exception of the Duke was done in accordance with the strength of Suzaku's combat skill. They knew he was a nightmare at melee range and chose instead to keep him at distance to where his weapons and agility were more limited. Note how Lee spammed off every weapon he had, drawing Suzaku in who KNEW he was spamming, then deliberately jobbed so Victoria could get a clean shot. Yoshi was pretty much the same way, quickly closing the range, then while Suzaku is scrambling pull back. It's what I refer to as a "yo-yo maneuver" in mecha anime and games. But the basic gist is to hit and fade as quickly as possible so you're enemy can't bring his strength to bear.

If you notice almost every single time Suzaku fought in R1, he controlled the tempo of the battle where he could do all of his maneuvers and fighting styles, because he was locked usually in a 1v1 with Kallen. But if you throw someone who refuses to fall into his tempo and instead play to their own tempo (a la Zero and the Holy Swords during the Tohdoh break), he was both limited and ineffective. In many ways both the foreignness and the threat presented by the sniper that Suzaku knew was out there, but didn't know where, limited his capability to fight.

Next up **Guest 1/10/13. chapter 7**: If you will notice, three times the Live command actually kicked in. They are just not blatant, subtlety is everything. I'll let you figure exactly where. I like giving challenges.

Finally, I know I told you all I was going to have Milly this chapter. I decided to move that to next chapter (AGAIN!), but fear not my readers, she will have her moment in this chapter, and believe me, and it will open a few doors for you guys to wonder exactly what is going on with everything.

Until next week or two.


	9. Pawns on a Board of Bone

Aria Huit

**Pawns on a Board of Bone**

"What did you want to talk to me about," Suzaku asked sitting down in a stone bench in the veranda in the middle of the Aries Villa gardens, Nunnally now situated across from him, night was creep as the sun begun to set.

"Can I have your hand," she asked quietly, thinking nothing if it, he placed his hand in hers, her bony fingers curling around it as she placed her other hand over it and placed it on the edge of her chair.

"You've been really distracted this entire time you have been here, is there something bothering you?"

_Other than the fact that I executed your brother in cold blood? Absolutely nothing_, his mind sarcastically responded.

"Just all these new responsibilities are getting to me," he lied; forcing a smile on his face so he could sound convincing.

"I see," she responded, frowning deeper now, "are you glad he's dead?"

"Who?"

"Zero. Are you glad you killed him? That you took revenge for my brother? For Euphie?"

His gut twisted at those questions. Of course he wasn't happy, he killed his best friend, regardless of what happened, and Euphie was dead because he believed in said friend. But no matter how much his heart yearned to speak the truth, the truth didn't matter.

"I am," he said firmly, his jaw set.

Nunnally let out a sharp gasp as she recoiled from him as if struck with a hammer.

"Nunnally what's wrong?"

"How...how could you be so cruel," she accused, tears beginning to trickle down her face.

"What? What's wrong, Nunnally," he asked though it felt like his heart had just fallen through a trap-door into the abyss, there was only one answer for these hysterics.

"We cared about you, you were like a brother to us," she fought to control her breathing, "he may have done monstrous things but he was doing what he thought was right. And you killed him!"

"Nunnally I-"

"Stop it! Stop lying!"

"I knew it, I knew he was Zero," she said choking her sobs, "I knew it when he came back one night smelling of blood and guns, you can't ever forget that smell. And I wanted him to stop, I wanted to beg him. But then I heard why he was doing it when he was talking to Miss C.C. Did you ever think why he would do it? Why he would become a monster?"

"No I-"

"Because of me, Suzaku," she said quietly, those tear-streaked closed eyes locked straight on his in an unnerving display, her fingers digging into his hand, "he did all of that so he could create a world for me where I could have a life just like everyone else. He wanted to destroy Britannia for me!"

That's why he was doing it, Suzaku thought in stunned realization as he retreated into his thoughts, the pieces slowly falling into place. Even as he felt himself drown.

"And the worst part of knowing," continued, steadying herself in the chair, "is knowing that I couldn't do anything about it. When our mother died, not only did I end up how I am now, but I know Lelouch lost everything that made him happy. He's spent the last seven years of his life only caring about me without spending one moment for himself. Everything! EVERYTHING! Was done for me! How could I lie to him if I told him I was happy? Happy with a life in which we were both constantly in fear of being discovered or worse. I wanted more as well, so I said nothing."

This was too much for him to digest, Nunnally, the kind-hearted caring young girl, not only knew, but willingly allowed Lelouch to be Zero. It was inconceivable.

"You're going to kill me," she whispered, her hands tightening around his like a vise with all its strength, the hands almost white as chalk now, "just like Lelouch. I'm just as guilty as him, all those deaths, all that sadness, they are my fault."

"No," he hoarsely choked out, his eyes tearing up as well, "never Nunnally. I can't do it. I won't do it!"

She seemed to shrivel, her hands releasing his, that tiny frame trying to make itself even smaller.

"I can't do it," he continued, shoring himself, finding a solemn promise made at gunpoint the only thing keeping him strong enough to continue, "I promised him that I would protect you. And I intend to carry that through no matter what. It doesn't matter that he was my enemy, he was also my friend as well, and I wish it hadn't come down to what it did. But it did and I'll have to live with it for the rest of my life. That's why I will protect you or die trying...because I gave him word."

She slapped him, there wasn't any time for him to react, the hand lashed out faster than he thought possible from her, but it connected, the sound of flesh meeting flesh echoing in the veranda as the two sitting there, so close, yet so distant now.

But the look of anger on Nunnally had dissipated into confusion as that same hand now reaching out, fingers dancing over his cheek, and the still healing tract of flesh where Lelouch's bullet had furrowed, flesh that would no longer be pristine.

The fingers traced it all the way back to his ear, where the still sensitive skin on his ear from the reconstruction.

"Did...did Lelouch do that?"

He merely nodded, Nunnally pulling her hands away, sniffling.

"I...Suzaku, please...just leave," she pleaded, "I don't want you here...unless Cornelia or I summon you. Please...just go away."

"Nunnally-"

"My lord...MY LORD!"

Suzaku's eyes snapped open as he found himself not at the Aries Garden, but in the pressurized cabin of a jet, Yuki standing over him, concern on her face.

Reaching up, he rubbed his face, as he slowly became more alert.

A warm towel was held out in front of him by Yuki. This caused him to stop, casting a cautious glance at her impassive face. He then took it from her hand and wiped off his face as his mind slowly focused on the here and now, and logged away a dream of events past.

"What is it," he asked finally.

"The Duke sends his regards and would like you to join him in the cockpit," she said quietly, "he said that we are on approach to the Tokyo Settlement's airspace.

Suzaku sighed irritably as he got himself up out of the cabin chair, before stopping as he started stretching.

"Thank you, Yuki."

She gave a small nod, before he headed out of the main cabin and up to the cockpit door, knocking lightly upon it before opening it up.

Sitting in the copilot chair of the jet was the Duke, the chair turned around so he could face Yoshi. Sitting in the pilot's chair was KJ; a surprising fact when Suzaku had learned it and made him curious as to if there was anything KJ wasn't capable of. The Duke wore a smile on his face while Yoshi was chuckling, obviously something had exchanged before his entrance.

"Suzaku, I thought you'd want to be here."

"Why's that," he asked taking a seat at the other unoccupied chair on the flight deck behind KJ and across from Miyazaki.

"Well for you to see Tokyo and it's hasty reconstruction...and to discuss your Barony. Looks like you're getting the Tokyo ghettoes," he added with a hint of annoyance in his tone.

_The Ghettoes?! There is no infrastructure; there isn't anything to be even called a Barony! Unless..._

He then paused before looking at the Duke. The Duke had been annoyed by it, which meant he knew more.

"This isn't normal, is it?"

"No, it isn't. In fact, as far as I know it had planned for you to receive Narita due to its proximity to the main military district in Area 11. But noble land furnishings are handled by the Chief Executive's office, which, unfortunately for you, is under the control of Crown Prince Odysseus, who just so happens to be aligned with Crown Princess Guinevere. This is more direct than she usually is, but I guess you poked her in the eye, this is her retaliation."

_And risking open war with Schneizel_, the Duke added mentally, _Schneizel doesn't appreciate his prospective pets tampered with. Wonder how that will end up.  
_  
_Pettiness, that's all it was_, Suzaku thought bitterly and angrily. _He was just stopping_, he bit those thoughts off and took a mental breath.

"So, that's what I'm getting."

"Including the Kururugi Shrine, yes."

He sighed, running his hand through his hair.

"I take it you have some advice for me then considering how nonplused you are."

"Oh, I think I have an idea to make it successful. We're just lucky Schneizel didn't shell the ghettoes into dust as well," this earned a withering look from Suzaku, which the Duke ignored, "the question is, how much do you want to make it successful?"

Suzaku opened his mouth to quickly answer in the affirmative, but quickly clamped it shut as his brain filtered that it was a loaded question.

Just how far was he willing to go? His goal was to free Japan, yet he had no idea other than taking the Knight of One's position, but the likelihood was looking less and less probable the more he looked at it.

"I will get back to you on it," he finally said.

"As you wish, My Lord. I am glad I decided to tag along on this though, my workload has increased quite a bit in case you make a decision."

Suzaku nodded in acknowledgement as the Duke seemed to retreat into his thoughts.

"I'll leave Miyazaki to escort you while I go and find out exactly what will be needed. Also, you wanted to know more about Yuki?"

Suzaku looked in surprise at the Duke; he had said nothing about any of that to anyone. How did he know?

"File on the console will tell you. We were lucky, the service that...appropriated her skills are very meticulous in their record keeping. Hopefully it will useful to you."

Suzaku looked at the folder, and then back to the Duke, there was something there in his tone that belied a certain surety.

"You use them," he accused angrily.

"Not in the way you expect," the Duke responded defensively, "I use them as a talent scouting agency. They don't kidnap, that's not part of any contract I have with any agency, and they approach with a job offer. More often than not, they take it. The royals and a lot of other nobility just have them kidnapped and tamed, I would never approve of that, not even in my duchy."

Sensing the sincerity of the statement, he opened up the folder and began leafing through it.

The Duke took one more look at the Knight of Eleven before swiveling around in the chair, KJ catching his small mod, reaching up and keying the comm. on his ear.

"Tokyo Control, this is November-Hotel-Foxtrot three-seven-two-eight, the Knight of Eleven and the Duke of New Haven are requesting clearance for a flyover of the settlement area."

This caused Suzaku to look up at the mention of his rank. But before he could protest he saw through the cockpit canopy and the pall of smoke still in the distance.

"Is that?"

"Tokyo? Yes," the Duke responded, "they've finished off the last of the fires but the wind has been unusually nonexistent, so it's just hanging there."

"Roger that, thank you, Tokyo Control," KJ stated, looking over to the Duke, "we're clear."

"Suzaku, switch with me," the Duke stated, spinning the chair around and getting up, "you'll probably want to see this."

Suzaku replaced him in the copilot's chair adjusting it to suit him before the plane suddenly tilted, allowing him a bird's eye view of the devastation that was the Tokyo Settlement.

He was stunned by how much worse it was than what he had seen. Obviously information was being heavily censored in order to prevent any effects upon the civil order. While the ghettoes looked relatively intact, the rest of the settlement was in ruin. But already the difference was to be scene at the harbor where three large super-container ships were currently moored disgorging their cargoes into smaller ships.

"There's four more of those on their way from Pearl," the Duke stated, "those were deployed from Area 12 and there's another eight on their way from the mainland. Combine that with the civil airlift capacity currently being fully mobilized there are several megatonnes of equipment and building supplies on their way to the Tokyo Settlement. The overall objective is to rebuild everything within a year at the most."

"Can they do it," he was found himself asking as the jet went into a circular pattern.

"With that amount of megatonnage? Depends really on who Cornelia's replacement will be."

Suzaku kept his eyes locked now on the ghettos, easily discernible by the intact walls that still were in place to keep the Japanese out of the settlement area.

"What about the people from the settlement?"

"As far as I know, those that could have left the region for the time being, those that can't are either being housed in other cities or are bivouacked over in Narita. The Elevens are being contained in the ghettoes still; in fact, I heard they moved the Sixteenth and Twentieth Corps from Kyoto to contain them for the time being. Good units with good commanders, so I expect the situation to be relatively stable on the ground as things get underway."

_In fact_, the Duke added mentally, looking at Suzaku whose gaze was still locked out the glass,_ soon Britannia will begin to recognize that it doesn't have the skilled personnel and labor depth it had when it first invaded Japan, too many new fronts, too many new settlements being built. All that is needed is for you to recognize it and take advantage of that opening._

00000000000000000000000

To say that the last four days had been unkind to Milly Ashford would be insulting understatement: it had been a roller coaster into the depths of hell.

The Battle of Tokyo had not only turned the Ashford Academy into a shambles because of its usage as a relief shelter and military command center, but the events with Tokyo had claimed students from the Academy. The names and faces still not far from her mind as the greatest tragedies was the death of Lelouch...but also her grandfather.

Her grandfather, she smiled sadly as she looked at the picture on the desk again, had done what he always had done when he had come here: taking care of the students under the aegis of the foundation. He had rushed into the settlement to rescue a student's family and bring them here, but he didn't make it back. The students family did...but her grandfather...

She shook her head the tears misting her eyes.

Now she was the last Ashford, in charge of both the Foundation and the Academy. And neither was looking good.

The phone began ringing and without hesitation, picked it up and simply, as courteously as she could, ground out a "no comment" before slamming it down.

But as much as her grandfather's loss tore at her, it was Lelouch that that hurt the worst of all. Lelouch had become like family in a way, the cheerful and intelligent Prince had always been a favorite for her to pick on because he always made it so easy and fun. The way that he always suffered through it with a smile and never really protesting.

Her mouth quirked up for a split second at the memories before reality came crashing back to remind her as the phone rang.

She picked it up again, got another suffering "no comment" out before hanging it up.

These calls had been going on since it had broke that Nunnally and Lelouch had been staying here. While the media still hadn't been reestablished in the settlement to hound the gates of the Academy, that hadn't stopped them from hammering its phone lines for any scoop.

But it wasn't that that scared her in the least, it was the Imperial family. She understood the wrongness of what her family had done to hide them when the world believed Lelouch and Nunnally as dead. It was borderline treasonous, and the Imperial family was as vindictive as the best of them, they had proven that once when they stripped her grandfather's title after Empress Marianne's death. What did they have left to take?

It scared her, it honestly did, so many things were changing so fast, and in spite of her confidence, she was unsure she could weather the storm.

A light rapping on wood caused her to be snapped out of her thoughts and look up at the source of the noise.

Standing in the entryway of the door, was a man dressed in a rather expensive looking and stylish business suit and red tie. His white hair reaching down to his shoulders and blue piercing eyes staring at her while his mouth was curled up in a warm smile.

Under normal circumstances, there was no doubt that she would be swooning over this handsome man, but these were not normal circumstances, as she simply threw up those barriers of grief and hurt like a shield before her.

"May I help you," she asked, trying to keep the nervousness out of her tone.

"I was looking for Lady Ashford," the man said, _Oh God he has THAT kind of voice, the kind that just made girls melt into a helpless puddle_, but her mind stopped, he had just referred to as Lady, a noble title.

"It's just Miss," she replied, "and you are?"

The man stepped into the room and offered a hand to her.

"The Duke of New Haven Alexander Knight, Lady Ashford. A friend of the Ashford's never forgets what was wrongly taken from them," he stated, keeping that warm smile that caused a bit of Milly's shield to melt like snow still in place, his voice almost like a drug that caused blissfulness.

_A friend of the Ashford's_, Milly thought shaking the hand, while shaking off the feeling, _I didn't know there were any left in the noble ranks. Who is this man?_

"What business do you have with me," she found herself asking in order to keep arranging her thoughts as the Duke sat down in a chair across from the desk she currently occupied.

"It is concerning the fate of both the Ashford Academy and the Foundation itself. I am curious as to your thoughts on it."

Her eyes narrowed slightly, to someone like her, thus was so obviously a fishing question that it might as well be a large neon sign in her face. But for the life of her the angle was beyond her. Why would he be interested in what she thought about something that more than likely be gone shortly? It's not like she could be able to do anything with it at her age.

"Are you referring to its example or its future?"

"A little of both."

"I think it's a great philanthropic organization and establishment. My grandfather was right in instituting it in Japan as a place for educating students who are honestly far away from home and don't have the type of social circles one would expect in the homeland. We are also more egalitarian than a lot of the schools in the settlement areas in that we allow for Numbers to apply to the school. But…," she shook her head, "it really doesn't matter anymore. With the revelation that we had been sheltering Prince Lelouch and Princess Nunnally, I don't expect the foundation or this school to be an establishment much longer."

The phone rang causing Milly to become irritated as she reached over to grab it, only for the Duke's hand to come to a rest on hers, her eyes snapping up towards the Duke's eyes and she almost felt herself fall into the flecks of arctic-blue as the irritation dissipated almost without fail. There was no anger she could feel at this as the phone rang again, all she could feel was the warmth on her face, at the realization of this man's hand on hers and it was so deliciously warm.

"Let me," the Duke said, and she could only find herself nod numbly as the Duke removed her hand from his, and then picked up the phone.

"Ashford Academy, might I inquire as to who is calling," the Duke asked, his eyes still on hers.

"Anita Bathory, BNN, hmmm," the Duke purred as he cradled the phone, causing an unconscious shiver to go through Milly, "you wish to ask a few questions concerning the Ashford's sheltering of the Prince and Princess?"

A predatory lick of his lips as his eyes twinkled almost caused her to melt away at the scene before him as he leaned back in the chair, a smile plastered on his face.

"Well Miss Bathory, it is Miss, isn't it? Miss Ashford will issue a statement when she is perfectly ready. As you are probably well aware, as is your job, her grandfather was also caught in the fighting and unfortunately did not make it. I know it is not standard procedure for you to hold off on following the story, but I think in this case it would be wise for you to do so."

The Duke listened to the other end of the phone for a few moments.

"Miss Bathory, please, we are all civilized beings. Do I need to talk to your boss? I don't think he would appreciate having to have a chat with me due to your overzealous pursuance of the Miss Ashford. Who is this? Oh, silly me, I forgot to tell you, this is the Duke of New Haven."

He then placed the phone down and pressed a button on it, allowing for Milly to listen in on the silence on the other end of the phone before suddenly, a contralto voice started sounding through it.

"My Lord, I apologize, I didn't mean to….express my apologies to Miss Ashford and tell her we await her statement, however long it takes you."

"Thank you and Miss Bathory?"

"Yes, My Lord."

"Please pass word to your colleagues from the other services who have been harassing Miss Ashford that they can wait for a statement as well. If not, well…Christmas is coming up, and your boss and I always go skiing in the Appalachians."

An audible gulp was heard.

"Of course, My Lord."

"Good evening."

The Duke then didn't let anything else be said as he placed the phone back on the cradle.

"There, that should keep them off of you for the time being," he stated, as he leaned back in the chair and steepled his hands, "as to your worries concerning Imperial censure, there won't be one coming."

"And how would you know this," she asked, surprised.

"The Imperial family doesn't enjoy having its dirty laundry exposed. The entire Empress Marianne affair is a bit of a black eye even now. Besides, there are some who are grateful the Ashford's hid the vi Britannia's. If they had been discovered, the level of popular support would have been devastating for those who have certain...agendas."

That actually...made a lot of sense. Lelouch had once joked about how he could be Emperor overnight with the people if he miraculously returned from the dead. She had never taken it seriously, but after seeing the people camped out outside of Nunnally's residence she was ready to believe that observation.

"So the question once again becomes," he purred, "what do you plan to do now?"

"What I plan...," she stopped, what did she plan to do, it's not like she had any plan; she had expected the shoe to drop on her and stopping her from having to make any decision.

Now, if what this man was saying was true, then she would have to make a decision. But what...she owed it to the students who were still on campus to continue it. But really, could she do it? Could she be the headmistress of the school as well as student, along with the head of the Ashford Foundation?

"Your grandfather once told me," the Duke said quietly, the confident tone gone now, replaced with a level of understanding, "that doing what we feel is right, instead of our duty will lead you to the path of righteousness. If both happen to coincide, then you can sleep easily at night."

"You knew my grandfather," she asked.

"I used to exchange letters with Ruben back in the day when I was...misguided," the Duke replied, "he was a strict taskmaster for me. I am who I am because of it," the smile was back, "he was a great man who was willing to hear you out and care for those he never even met. The world is a worse off place with his loss."

There was something more to that than he wants to say, Milly thought, her gut instincts taking over.

"Thank you," she finally said, "I think my grandfather would want me to graduate. I'm not sure he would want me to tie down my life with this. But, with what happened to Tokyo, I'm unsure if I can keep the Academy open, too many students are withdrawing..."

"Lady Ashford," the Duke interjected, "let me stop you there. I represent an entity that has a unique interest in the Academy, specifically in the near future. Tell me, what do you think of the Elevens?"

"What is this entity?"

"They prefer to keep their identity private, but they call themselves the Gestalt. Now, the Elevens?"

"I think they are like us in a lot ways," she decided to say, throwing caution to the wind, it'll be interesting to see his expression, "good and bad, they were just unfortunate in that they are now a vassal state of Britannia."

If she was expecting a hostile reaction, she was sorely mistaken as the Duke merely kept his eyes locked on her after she had finished.

"And the thought of a sudden influx of Eleven applicants to Ashford?"

"If they pass the entrance exam and provide the necessary tuition, they are perfectly welcome."

"I see," the Duke said, sitting there for a long time, "in that case, Lady Ashford, my masters would like to extend their support to you."

Her eyes narrowed; there definitely was something there, why would anyone want to support the Academy for any reason.

"And why would they be so generous?"

"Because in the next couple of weeks, the Barony of Suzaku Kururugi will come online, and when that happens, the Elevens in those ghettoes will start finding themselves with jobs because of the need to rebuild the settlement. That money will of course need to be spent and for a lot of families it will be for education. The Ashford Academy is one of the few remaining schools that are intact, and with the exodus of Britannians...," he shrugged, "the Gestalt views that as a beneficial situation for all parties, including yours, Lady Ashford."

"You sound pretty confident, Duke," she stated, her suspicions being stoked even further, that level of analysis suggested that whatever this Gestalt was, it was heavily involved with the government, why would their agenda involve her, and why the interest in the Academy. This man knew her grandfather…

Could it be her grandfather was Gestalt?

That was a troubling thought. Her grandfather wasn't one for secret organizations, but now she wasn't so sure. The timing of this Duke's presence was too coincidental...and there were no such things as coincidences for Milly Ashford.

"Alright, Duke, tell your bosses that for now I am in. But I would prefer to have access to you if I have any problems."

"Of course, M'lady," he responded, that purr back in full force, "my time is yours. To help you in preparing..."

He reached into his suit and pulled out an envelope and card, he then placed them down on the desk, and began to turn towards the door and stopped.

"I almost forgot. Your grandfather left this with me in the event anything ever happened to him. I don't know what's in it, but it must have been important."

He then pulled out another medium-sized envelope out of his jacket and handed it to Milly.

"Good day, Lady Ashford."

She then looked at the card, which had a phone number on it, and the two envelopes.

She grabbed and opened up the envelope and gasped at its contents

In it was a check for eight million pounds.

"Duke," her head snapped up, to find the Duke gone.

She looked at the check for a minute placing it down.

_It had to be a mistake. A check that huge, what is it for? How did they want me to spend it?  
_  
She reached over to her phone and began punching in the number on the card, before she stopped as she looked at the other envelope, curiosity overtaking her as she placed the phone back down.

What would her grandfather leave her that would be in the hands of a man she had never met?

She placed her hands on it, noting how firm it felt, looking it over as wariness gnawed at her. What was so important about this?

She took a letter opener and sliced open the top, tilting it to spill its contents a single photograph fell out of two men with a woman in between them, smiles on their faces.

Yet it was the man on the left that caused her to double-take as she recognized her grandfather standing to the left of Empress Marianne.

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The Duke sighed as he got into the back of the car, KJ adjusting the rearview mirror to look back at him.

"How'd it go Alexander," he asked as the Duke loosened his tie a bit.

"A bit better than I hoped, Ruben raised an intelligent Granddaughter; she's a survivor and has a wit and mind like the old man."

KJ started driving along as the Duke looked out the window of the car as they went.

"Goddamn him," the Duke growled, "hiding this from me, of all people."

"The Prince?"

"Of course the Prince," he snapped before sighing again, "he could have been the catalyst we needed, but Ruben and his damnable sense of honor. If Lelouch had succeeded in his rebellion it would have had a domino effect for reforms we could have pushed through."

He sighed and shook his head again.

"Oh well, no point wasting energy on what cannot be changed. As much as I hate cultivating Cornelia, it's the only horse in the race now, thanks to Schneizel. Lord Stadtfeld is here in Tokyo, right?"

"Yes, he arrived last night."

The Duke fell silent again; KJ could almost feel the Duke thinking. That was one thing he liked about his charge, he wasn't one to charge into something without thinking it through, it was a lot better than a lot of the people he had encountered over the years.

"I think I'll pay a visit to him, he'll have an idea on what all will be needed to position Kururugi to take advantage of the situation."

"About that Alexander."

"Let me guess, Lady Stadtfeld."

"She's poking her nose too close to our interests for my comfort."

The Duke's gaze slipped back out the window.

"Risks?"

"She was digging into Project Delphi."

"What about Project Justitia?"

"She's sniffing around it."

The Duke fell silent as they passed an EOD truck that was busy digging a shell out.

"It seems Lady Stadtfeld has promoted herself from minor annoyance to too annoying for our tastes," he finally said, "could you see to her disposal?"

Keith Jenkins frowned contemplatively at the question. While he might officially be the Duke's majordomo, he served a much more complex role than people might expect. Simply put, he served the Duke in every capacity, including such pesky things like murder.

"It has been a rather stressful last couple of days, hasn't it, My Lord," KJ stated, coming to a solution.

He could feel those eyes leveled on the back of his head. He had known the Duke since he had been a gangly awkward teenager and after the Japan invasion, seem to metamorphose into this seeming force of will. But wasn't just the way he carried himself or the way he spoke, it was the eyes, even for a cold-hearted man such as himself, he could feel himself being drawn into those that seemed to both captivate and compel him. It was obvious in the fact how he seemed to mesmerize crowds when he spoke. There was almost no doubt in his mind that this man, in a different life, could have been a great Emperor, but circumstances of birth had created a gilded cage in which only he could operate in.

"Indeed it has, Keith, it would be unfortunate if the stress got to her."

Keith silently nodded as inwardly he smiled at the leash being taken off. Now he could do what he did best. Now what would he use...

A phone started ring, snapping him out of his contemplation.

"Knight here...He's doing WHAT?!...Alright, keep me apprised...No, but I'll plan accordingly...If something happens, contact me immediately, I'll be over at the Sixteenth...Good, and Yoshi, if you feel he is threatened, Case Delta."

He waited a few more moments before deactivating it.

"Problems?"

"Seems giving the file on Yuki to Kururugi was a miscalculation. He's right now going through a checkpoint into the Shinjuku Ghetto. Looks like the Earl will have to wait, however, arrange a visit for dinner. Let's go visit Colonel Hunter."

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How long had it been since the Shinjuku Incident? It seemed like an eternity ago when he had been reunited with Lelouch and his entire life had changed.

Yet even an eternity could hide the decay that was the Shinjuku ghetto, if anything it had gotten worse after the incident. The sense of hopelessness seemed to permeate in the air as he spotted in several places groups of people huddled together in whatever shelter together.

He looked to Yuki, her face an impassive mask, yet he could see the anger smoldering in her eyes as she walked over some of the debris leading them on.

He couldn't blame her, to be honest, the ghetto was getting even worse, and it was Clovis that had caused it. His zeal had both turned this place into further disrepair and claimed many lives.

He glanced over his shoulder at Yoshi Miyazaki, whose eyes were actively scanning the surroundings before it seemed he sensed Suzaku's glance, swiveling his head to meet his eyes before Suzaku averted his gaze.

The three times he has tried to strike up conversation with Miyazaki so far into their journey, he had politely and emphatically been rebuffed. Probably because of his irritation with Suzaku for being here in the first place.

Miyazaki had been hell-bent on not allowing him to go into the ghetto for any reason, but he had been overridden by himself. So Miyazaki had insisted that they dress casually like any Eleven would in order to blend in. Sensing the opportunity to smooth ruffled feathers, Suzaku had at least approved of that.

Yet, Miyazaki still seemed completely on edge, as if he was expecting a problem.

"Seems quiet," Suzaku said under his breath after trailing back to Miyazaki's side.

He didn't even get eye contact as Miyazaki sighed.

"Look, I know you want to try and strike a convo with me, but my job is to make sure you survive this foolhardiness. That means I need to focus on what's going on around us."

Suitably chastised, Suzaku looked back ahead as Yuki stopped for a moment, then veered to the right.

"But you're right," Yoshi admitted, "it's too quiet, it's like Badr Day all over again."

"Badr Day," Suzaku asked, only to be interrupted by Yuki clearing her throat.

"We're here."

Suzaku looked at the structure Yuki was now in front of, a simple single-story concrete building, but the way it looked it was as it was constructed after the Ghetto had been put up, which meant it was something important.

Yuki then opened up the door and stepped in, leading Suzaku and Yoshi inside.

Almost immediately, Suzaku realized that the reason this building was so important was that it was a clinic as he noted the various people all gathered on various benches and chairs along, some children trying to play, while others were crying. But all of them had some kind of malady to them.

A tired older lady suddenly shuffled in front of them, wearing what looked like the kind of clothes worn by a receptionist, but were worn and faded from repeated use and washing.

"What's the problem," her head focused on a clipboard.

"There is none," Yuki said, "Aunt Emi."

The woman looked like a current ran through her as her head shot up to stare at Yuki, her eyes wide as saucers as she paled.

"Yuki," she stammered, looking as if she was looking at a ghost, the clipboard dropping out of her hands with a clatter as she reached out to touch her, "can it be?"

Yuki's hand caught hers and she pulled the woman into a hug.

"Oh my god, Yuki," Emi breathed, hugging the younger girl tightly, "it really is you. Where have you been?"

She shook her as she let go, "No, I'll find out later, your father and mother are in the back room putting together some medicine for a lot of the people here. It's another round of that bug again."

Yuki frowned, the mention of that bug...

"Forget that," she said, "go, they will be so happy you're back. And with two fine gentlemen," she winked at her.

Yuki didn't respond to that, only thanking her and leading them on, but as they were entering the hallway, Suzaku caught two men with rifles, obviously some kind of guard for the clinic, staring at him with unveiled contempt, then he was out of their sight.

But Yoshi was now tightly behind him, as if the guards had set him off

Before he could think anymore on it, Yuki was knocking on a door, before opening it quietly and leading them in, the door shutting behind them once inside.

Standing with their backs to them surrounded by assortment of modern medicine and..._were those herbs?_ Were a man and a woman as they worked feverishly but silently.

"If that is you Emi, tell them we'll have it ready in a few minutes."

"Mom...Dad."

The woman let out a gasp as they both stiffened, before the woman turned around slowly, as if not believing it.

Suzaku could already see where Yuki got her graceful looks from scanning over Yuki's mother, but time had not exactly been kind to her looking at the lines on her face, obviously from exertion and stress, her father was much the same as they focused on her.

"Yuki," the mother half-asked half-stated as she seemingly tried to comprehend what was before her as her father was equally shocked.

Yuki darted forward, wrapping her arms around her mother, this time crying, the mask completely gone, replaced by the joy of a twenty-year-old being reunited with her family.

"It really is you," her mother breathed, tears trailing down her face as she bear hugged her daughter, "when Atsushi said a kidnap team was on the hunt we just knew..."

"I'm sorry mother, I should have paid more attention," she said crying, "but I'm here."

Her father wrapped his arms around the two of them and Suzaku now felt like a fly on the wall, intruding on this obviously intimate moment.

"You probably have so many stories," her mother stated, wiping away her tears, before she dropped and noted the two men with her.

"Who might these men be," she asked cautiously, obviously noting their Japanese appearance, but there was something of a flicker of recognition in both Yuki's mother and father's eyes.

Just as Suzaku was about to answer, the door flew open.

One of the guards, his face a mask a mask of determination was swinging the rifle towards Suzaku.

"For Zero," he bellowed just as the trigger was tightening, a part of Suzaku's was in autopilot, as his legs began carrying him towards the threat at the same time stepping in a way that caused the attacker to keep swinging the gun to keep him in its sight profile.

Suddenly, Yoshi was there, flattened palm pushing up the gun as it fired, rounds digging into the concrete ceiling before Yoshi's hand viciously dug into a pressure point on the resting arm, the man yelping in pain before it disappeared into a gurgle as the hand that swept away the gun now came down in a strike that caused blood and teeth to fly away.

He then lashed his hand out and grabbed the man by the throat and slammed him down, hand sliding behind his back to reveal a gun which he trained down the hallway.

"Clear," he called, grabbing the dazed and bloodied man by the shirt and dragging him into the room gun still trained down the hall before slamming the door shut.

"His buddy's probably getting a mob together, fucking Badr Day all over again," Yoshi deadpanned looking at the man and slapping him to focus, "look at me dumbass, how many of your buddies you got coming?"

"Fuck you," the man spat out, blood frothing from his mouth.

"Charming," Yoshi stated, slugging the man into unconsciousness, sliding the body in front of the door and propping it in front of it, before looking at the stunned expressions.

"You didn't notice the looks they were giving you," he asked incredulously, "I warned this is exactly what would happen if someone recognized you, and you are public enemy number one for these people."

It was obvious now why the Duke had sent Miyazaki with him, judging by the way he had effortlessly disarmed and incapacitated his attacker, the man had been a blur of violence when he had done it, now he was here chastising him. This man was dangerous, in spite of his positive disposition. This man was a predator.

"I saw it, but I thought it was more like they were suspicious."

Yoshi muttered something in a language as he shook his head.

"I thought I recognized you," her father spoke up, "you're Kururugi's son."

Suzaku reached up and took of the glasses to reveal his face as the Father's face congealed into anger.

"So you the one who bought her," he snarled.

"No, Father, wait," Yuki swiftly came to his defense, "Suzaku didn't have anything to do with that. I'm here because of him."

"Is that true," her mother asked.

"It is ma'am."

"This is all fine and dandy, Baron, we can arrange another one these meet-n-greets in the future. But we need to go...NOW!"

"Yuki, this is goodbye," Suzaku said after a moment, "this is why I brought you back home. So you can..."

"Now," Yoshi snarled, grabbing Suzaku by the arm, half dragging, half urging as he pulled Suzaku with him, and quickly exited the room, catching a look of confusion on Yuki's face, before the door closed again.

Yoshi kept pulling him, gun kept close to his body as he kept scanning the clinic for threats, instead it was empty save for a few people who were cowering out of the way. Emi, the Aunt, was trying to console an older woman before she flashed a glare at them.

Then they were through the door, to a roar that seemed to deafen, as Suzaku felt himself get pushed back into the door, his eyes catching the massed crowd outside the clinic, the sight of him causing an animalistic reaction as people spotted their target.

But as the door was fully closed, a hard object struck Suzaku in the head, causing him to stumble back as he momentarily blacked out, before coming back to with Yoshi letting out a string of curses in an unusually calm tone as he was dragging Suzaku across the floor.

"You," he commanded, looking out of Suzaku's groggy line of sight, "Emi, is there any way to barricade that door?"

A response that seemed garbled came back.

"Then do it."

All of a sudden, he felt more hands on him as Yoshi stopped, his mind slowly registering a warm sticky sensation on his brow and forehead.

"What happened," Yuki asked, as she came into his view looking across.

"A lynch mob happened," Yoshi retorted, looking back over his shoulder at something, "I think they got the Baron with a rock."

Yuki was looking down at him, her delicate hands tracing over where he had been hit, examining almost like a trained medic, a part of his mind put recognized.

"Mom, Dad, help."

Only her mother came over.

"Dad's helping move patients to the back," she stated looking him over herself.

"I don't think it's anything serious," Yuki was saying, "but I think he might have a mild concussion."

"That looks about right," her mother murmured, getting up.

"Get him upright and to the back," Yoshi commanded, "Miss Yuki, is there any place I can get reception?"

A loud pounding sounded from the door, causing Suzaku's mind to sharpen, Yuki's head focused on the door.

"Yuki," Miyazaki repeated.

"There's an atrium area where we grow some of the important herbs, it's past the room we were in."

"Are there any other exits?"

"Just the back," her father stated, suddenly Suzaku felt himself being helped to his feet, his head once again spinning, "but it's almost always locked."

"Does anybody know about it?"

"Everyone."

Yoshi cursed under his breath, looking at Yuki, "you know how to handle one of these?"

Yuki nodded.

_How does she know how to use a gun_, Suzaku lazily wondered.

"Just a second," her father interrupted, "don't get her involved..."

"Sir, be quiet, I trust your daughter with the Baron's life more than I trust you at all. I suggest you keep that in mind. Yuki, I'll be right back, get the Baron back to the room and protect him, I'm going to call for help."

He then moved towards the door as Yuki began tending to him.

Suzaku found himself in a seat as a warm cloth was pressed to his head as Yuki was before him.

His head was starting to clear up, though it still throbbed.

"How bad is it," he found himself asking.

"It'll heal," she replied, as Suzaku spied her parents watching them over her shoulder.

Finished with cleaning the wound she quickly applied a patch to it.

"When did you get medical training?"

"Parents taught me. The people around here need doctors and they are the only certified from before the war in the ghetto. If I didn't end up in Pendragon, I'd be here treating idiots like you."

"And why am I an idiot," he asked, this was an entirely different Yuki than what he had been used to over the last couple days. She was more open and social, like a flower that had finally blossomed.

"Because you think you can decide for me what I want," she replied plainly, "I am your majordomo, you can't get rid of me that easily."

She then gathered the rag up and placed it on the table.

"Besides, I can do more for this place serving you and ensuring you treat this place the way you've treated me up until now."

Suzaku could only nod, but as he was about to say something, a loud banging on the door stopped him.

"Doctors Kobayashi, it's me Toru, I'm here to speak to the two Britannians about the terms of their surrender.

Yuki grabbed Suzaku, half-dragging her with him.

"Harumi, get that Yoshi guy," her father, "Yuki...keep doing what you're doing."

"What are you doing?"

But Suzaku found himself being dragged into a closet, placing him behind herself as she held the gun up.

"Where'd you learn that," Suzaku could only find himself noting how confident she looked, there wasn't any hesitation or nervousness in the way she carried it.

"KJ," she whispered, catching his surprise, "what, you thought he was teaching me how to serve you and brew tea," she scoffed.

Before Suzaku could retort, he heard the door being opened, causing them both to freeze.

Through the door Suzaku could hear the rapid exchange going on between Yuki's father in Japanese. Part of Suzaku wished he could hear it clearly, but it was obvious by how animated it was becoming that it was a sharp disagreement.

"Father's dressing down Toru for turning the clinic into a war zone. Toru is telling my father that he needs to stand down or he's a sympathizer. Father, says he sides with only the sick and hurt."

It then went silent for awhile, before the conversation suddenly was in English, but this time it was between Yoshi and this Toru guy.

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Yoshi cursed again as he came into the atrium, unlatching the backpack he had been carrying since he had been tasked with nursemaiding the Kururugi kid.

He should have just knocked the kid unconscious when he had decided to go to the ghetto, would have been easier to explain to Al than now having to explain how they were now facing a lynch mob out for blood and his charge injured.

Of course, there was a reason Al had tasked him with this job. Out of the Knights of Idris, he had the keenest senses when it came to threat assessment. Which just so happened to be the reason every moment of this fool's errand his skin had been crawling as he had flashbacks to Badr, which the team always referred to in a tongue-in-cheek, as Badr Day.

The backpack opened, he reached down and grabbed the secure comm. set, immediately activating it and dialing the Duke.

He then took stock of what he had, taking a taped double magazine and sliding it into the magazine feed, pulling back the bolt, chambering a round and powering up the sight, wishing he had listened to his senses and brought a trio of drum mags, as the comm. connected.

"Talk to me Yoshi," the Duke's voice sounded in his ear.

"Badr Day minus the explosions and ragtag militias with all sorts of small arms. Count at least a hundred foot mobiles all sorts of pissed off outside my position. Hate to say I told you so."

"Noted. Fifty pounds, plus that stout you always brag about. Colonel Hunter's mobilizing a combat company of Knightmares together, I'm with him right now. What're your coordinates?"

Yoshi glanced down at his watch as he tapped it, causing it to switch screens to its navigation settings and began rattling off the numbers on the screen.

"Alright, ETA fifteen minutes. How's the Baron?"

"Injured, Yuki says it might be a slight concussion, weapon was a rock, I think. Locals are hesitant to charge, Yuki's parents are doctors and this is a clinic."

"Understood, just hold out, we'll be there shortly. I'll call in two minute intervals, make sure you have someone there to fill me in if you are…distracted."

"Right."

He cut the link, shedding the casual clothing to reveal a tactical vest and clipped the extra mags before turning back to the door to find Yuki's mother.

"Trouble," she said.

Yoshi looked at her for a moment, before looking at the communications set.

_Could he trust her with handling this? _No, he had to make a leap of faith here.

"In two minutes someone will be calling, inform him what's going on and where I am," he stated, making a snap decision, "that man is bringing people to try and defuse the situation. Okay?"

The woman nodded, and Yoshi rechecking his rifle before he moved back out the door and into the room where Suzaku had been in.

Trouble was the right word describing it, as Yoshi now found himself face-to-face with the other guard from before, now wearing the uniform of a Black Knight, in his hand a white flag.

_They want to discuss terms, how civilized_, the Britannian thought sarcastically as he kept the gun in a quick stance to use.

He glanced around, noting Suzaku was not in sight, causing him to glance down at his watch, mentally adding two minutes to it, Al always overestimated his ETA. It was always safe bet to add two minutes on to anything he did.

_Still sixteen minutes, can I buy that time? I have the advantage in knowing their limitations as to what they can so. It's obvious Yuki's parents are the only doctors in the area. _

"What are your terms Mister..."

"Aso," the man replied, his eyes flicking to the bound form of the man that had attacked earlier.

"I'm glad that you dogs didn't kill my brother," the man seethed, "who did that to him?"

"I did," Yoshi responded, challenge in his tone, "considering the idiot didn't clear the room first before he started shooting saved me from wasting any bullets on his incompetent ass."

The man's face darkened for a moment, before a smile came back to his face.

"Since you spared my brother, I'll be generous and spare your life. Our terms are that you return my brother and turn over the traitor Suzaku Kururugi to the people of Japan."

"That would require Japan to exist," Yoshi pointed out as courteously as he could under the circumstances, "I am not required to recognize your existence, but I'll be generous and let you have it. So, if I refuse?"

"We'll simply take him by force and kill you in the process."

Yoshi gave an award-winning smile.

"It seems like Zero was the only strategist you idiots seemed to have, because if you had half a brain cell, you would recognize a funnel when you saw it, Mister Aso. So, let me explain to you what is going to happen if you choose to charge my position."

He patted the assault rifle held in a ready position with his free hand.

"What this is a Modular Combat Rifle issued to special operations soldiers of Britannia, chambered in six-point-eight millimeter. It can fire eight hundred and fifty seven-point-four-six grain rounds at a muzzle velocity of eight hundred meters per second per minute. As you can see, I have two thirty round magazines taped together, and I have six of these ready to go. Each round is a specialized anti-personnel shredder round, what they do is they break apart inside the target and….bounce around a bit," he smiled as he let that sink in, "all it will take is one or two shots center mass and you're already dead. It takes me just under a second and a half to swap magazines."

"Now, that hallway you came through is is…lessay four meters wide and this door frame is a meter or so wide. Now, all I have to do is select my fire to where I can have your little rush suddenly turn into a pile of bodies that will be impassible for you. So, if you think you can take me, good luck, you have fifteen minutes."

"It will take your relief thirty minutes to mobilize and get here. You think you can take us all on in that time," he sneered.

"Son, when I was your age, I was in the middle of Area 18 dealing with religious fanatics who believed that if they died fighting infidels they would go to their God and wallow in honey, wine, and a plethora of virgins. You're small-time compared to them. But since you probably don't get the news around here, I'll fill you on a breaking bulletin for you guys. Kururugi is a Knight of the Round, Eleven to be exact."

This caused Aso to pale slightly. So he didn't know, Yoshi mused, that could be dangerous or it could be advantageous. He knew he could handle this man and his rabble quite easily, he had seen they were more of an angry mob than an organized force, but the butcher's bill and subsequent backlash would be….unfortunate for any reforms Al might want to have Suzaku put through here, so he had to make sure it was last moment. He was hoping that this Aso would just accept his confidence and bravado and choose to stand down, because, he glanced at his watch again, they had just spent two minutes having their little chat, which meant Al was going to come in weapons hot.

"That's right, Mister Aso. Right now you have a full strength combat company of Knightmares with a full combat load and no bullshit on the mind, even IF you get to the Knight of Eleven, which you won't, I assure you. Those Knightmares will retaliate on a level that will make the last time Shinjuku got fucked up look like a children's slumber party in comparison."

Just when he thought he was going to get the man to back down, but instead, it was as if a shift had suddenly take place in the man's demeanor. Gone was the anger and irritation as the idea of a Britannian talking full of bluster, in its place was simply an impassive, but determined look, a look that caused Yoshi's blood to chill.

_Oh crap_, Yoshi thought, recognizing immediately the look of a man with nothing to lose and everything to gain, he had seen it too much in Area 18 to miss it. His hands tightened around the gun as he brought it into an aim.

"Don't do it," he said half-commanding, half-asking, "these are innocent people you are throwing into the grinder."

"We don't have anything to live for anyways since you took our last hope, so we might as well die taking you with us," he snarled, "respect my parley, Britannian pig."

"I plan to, but the next person that comes through that door with hostile intentions, they will die, and their blood will be on their hands. And if you are not one of those dead, I will make it my personal crusade to hunt you down like the bastard you are."

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Suzaku looked down to Yuki who was more intent on the conversation a question continuously ringing in his head. Why?

Why was it that people were placing themselves at risk for his sake? Didn't they understand that he was better off alone in that no one would follow him into his descent. The fact that he was being protected when he honestly felt he shouldn't.

It quickly began escalating between this Toru guy and Yoshi to where it finally reached a head.

He couldn't have this happen, not again. If Yoshi went through with his promise and if the Duke was on his way, it was going to be a bloodbath.

He placed his hand on Yuki, who glanced back over her shoulder at him, then he pushed her aside.

Her eyes widened as she realized what he was about to do.

"My Lord, don't-"

But it was too late as he opened it up and stepped into the room.

"I surrender," he proclaimed.

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Things just couldn't get any worse Yoshi thought dismally, as now the Baron chose to go full weak-willed.

Aso grinned in victory as Yoshi's finger tightened on the trigger, one shot, and his head would burst like an overripe melon and he could proceed to protect his charge.

"Miyazaki, don't," Suzaku commanded, seemingly recognizing his intent, "lower your weapon. I surrender."

He looked to Aso, "as long as you honor your word to harm no one else here."

"You have my word."

"Baron," Yoshi warned, this couldn't be happening, of all the naive stupid shit, he was doing this?

"I'm sorry, Yoshi. But you are my knight and you are bound by my command. Stay here and protect Yuki and her family until the Duke gets here. Yuki...thank you."

She didn't say anything only watched as he walked over to Aso and took a deep breath.

"Let's go," he said, feeling the gun dig into his back.

"Lead the way, traitor," he glanced over one more time at his brother, who was being untied and helped to his feet, glaring at Yoshi with an unyielding fury.

"What about the Brit," his brother got out, "I want his head."

"Try me."

"Leave him, we're here for Zero's murderer, not petty revenge."

_Seems pretty revenge-like to me_, Yoshi thought.

The Brother then stepped beside his older brother, but not before giving a sneer towards Yoshi.

"Go, traitor," the gun was jammed further into his back and Suzaku opened the door and stepped into the empty hallway, before being led into the reception area, opening the entrance that he had come in in the first place and he stepped out into the glaring light as he was blinded.

When his eyes adjusted, they widened as he took in the sight of the crowd, completely silent, staring not at him, but around them, twenty-something Knightmares arranged on various buildings and on the ground around them. A lot more than a combat company, and a lot sooner than the time Yoshi was talking about.

"This is Colonel Alvis Hunter, Sixteenth Knightmare Corps, release the Knight of Eleven immediately or you will be eliminated with extreme prejudice, this is your only warning."

"What the-" Toru Aso exclaimed, his finger tightening around the pistol trigger.

And suddenly, Suzaku could feel his body moving without him commanding it, as if he was in autopilot, he shifted his center mass, and spun around while Aso was processing what was going on, spinning on his heel before his foot slammed into him, the sickening crunch of bone felt through his foot as the man went down, and Suzaku was upon the brother, driving his hand into his nose and breaking it, incapacitating him.

"Hold your fire," he shouted, picking up the gun, "it's over."

He looked in the glaring eyes of Aso, and then to Yuki, her parents, and Yoshi.

"My Lord, these people made a direct threat against your life, under noble and Knights of the Round law, you can decide their fate," the Colonel asked.

Suzaku spun around to what was obviously the Colonel's Gloucester judging by how it seemed to have this gothic alien look to the armor plating it was equipped with, then to the people before him, frozen in fear and trepidation for what could be coming, a mix of men, women, children, old and young

"Arrest these two men," he commanded, fighting back the wave of nausea from the sudden exertion, "let the rest go."

"My Lord?"

But it was the expression of the people that had his attention, as the realization of what was happening finally dawned.

"I will not punish people whose only crime is being afraid. You have every reason to be afraid of us because of how we treated you," he stated, projecting his voice.

"But that is going to change," he declared, "I was going to wait until it is official, but I have been assigned the ghettoes of the Tokyo Settlement to administrate it."

He could see this was not settling well with a lot of the crowd, of course, he was a thrice-damned traitor who had sold out his country.

"Eight years ago, these ghettos were the pinnacle of Japanese pride and accomplishment, we were the beacon of what could be accomplished if we put our minds to it. I intend to not just administrate this like any noble, I intend to revive this region, not for Britannia alone, but for you."

"Why should we believe you," someone shouted from the crowd, "you're saying exactly what the Massacre Princess declared and you were her knight."

"If I had known what Princess Euphemia was going to do, I would have stopped her myself," he lied, he had no idea what he would have done, but if Cornelia was right, there was nothing he could do to stop her…short of killing her. That was a thought he refused to even consider even now.  
_  
I'm sorry, Euphie. I swear I will clear your name, even if it kills me._

"We have a chance here to prove to Britannia we are worth more than they could have ever imagined," he continued, "but we must be the first to take that step, and keep taking those steps no matter how many times they rebuff us. I promise you, no, I pledge all of my being, if you work with me, the world shall see the beginning of the resurgence of Japan, not as a vassal state, but as a partner."

"You really think you can do anything for us," it was that same man, but this time, he made himself apparent by stepping to the front of the crowd, he was a man in his mid-to-late forties, other than that, the only real defining feature was the glasses and worn clothing he wore. But he seemed to command respect.

"Maybe not by himself, but the Baron has people who are willing to help him," this time the Duke was speaking up, from one of the Knightmares as the cockpit opened up and he stood up from it, "as the Duke of New Haven and a member of the Reformist Party, I can distinctly say the Baron has allies within the homeland who wish him success, and by that extension you. It does no one any good for Japan," this caused a murmur to break out in the crowd as it was not missed, "to remain how it is. That is why we stand ready to support the Baron in his endeavor."

Suzaku silently thanked the Duke for being there, he had hoped for it, and it seemed that hope was mot misplaced.

"Please, just think it over, talk with your neighbors, your friends. I honestly wish to help, I want you to succeed, and we have a chance to make it work."

He then bowed at the waist.

"Please, I ask of you as the son of the former Prime Minister, give me a chance, I won't fail you."

"We'll see," the man said before turning, the crowd dispersing as the Knightmares stood there mutely. It was only after that the Knightmares the Duke and Colonel were in jumped down and moved up in front of Suzaku, the Duke hadn't closed the cockpit during the entire moment. .

It was then the back of the gothic and almost alien-looking Gloucester opened up, and Suzaku got look of him as he climbed down to the ground and walked towards him.

He was a lot older than Suzaku imagined, yet at the same time had he fit the voice, towering, wearing the uniform of a Knightmare unit commander, but wearing a full-on cape which was clasped over both his shoulders, reminiscent if the Knights of the Rounds cape, but in crimson and black. His black hair which was now showing a pinch of grey at the temples was longer than military standards, but styled back into an aristocratic look, adding to the look was a sharp goatee that seemed to add to a perpetual scowl His eyes were a deep onyx color.

He then dropped to a knee as the Duke looked on beside him.

"My Lord, Colonel Alvis Hunter, Sixteenth Knightmare Corps, reporting," the man stated, his deep voice seemingly reverberating in Suzaku's head.

"Thank you Colonel," Suzaku said, his mind catching up to the events before him finally.

"You should thank Miss Kobayashi for informing us of the situation and Lieutenant Devereaux of 20 Corps for diverting from his combat company from their patrol assignment to assist in your recovery," the Colonel stated while still knelt before him,

"Please, Colonel, stand up, you don't need to do that," Suzaku pleaded, feeling slightly embarrassed by the display.

"It is required for common-born to recognize nobility," the Colonel simply stated, before rising to his feet, surveying Suzaku for a few moments, "even if they make foolish decisions in regards to their safety and security."

"About that," Yoshi's voice from behind Suzaku right before he was about to protest, causing him to spin around, right into the fist of the angry Britannian, flying backwards as he was ill-prepared for the sucker punch.

"Don't you EVER do that again," Yoshi snarled, uncurling his fist, and shaking it, "I don't care if you are a Knight of the Round or nobility, you ever try a stunt like that again, I will shoot you myself."

Now another part of Suzaku ached as he felt his jaw which, while it appeared nothing was broken, felt like someone had taken a two-by-four to it, he angrily righted himself and glared straight at the man who had just moments ago been his bodyguard.

"Don't give me that look, boy," Yoshi stated angrily, "do you even realize what you were doing?"

"I was trying to save lives."

"By throwing away your own? Baron, respectfully, you aren't an Honorary Britannian or a Knight anymore. You are a Baron and a Knight of the Round, which means that if those people had killed you, it wouldn't just be the people mobbed up here that would have paid the price, it would have been most of the ghetto. Your life is now worth a lot more than it was, and if you had let me do my job, the amount of dead would have been maybe a handful if it had escalated."

He stopped, seemingly looking over Suzaku's shoulder at something, before refocusing one more time on Suzaku.

"Understand, my life, Yuki's life, her parents' lives, everyone else's here, they are worth less than yours, and what happens to you has a meaningful impact on everyone. So please, when you think of doing something you think of as heroic or smart, consult with people who actually know what the hell they are doing first, because it will probably save a lot of lives. Now, if you excuse me, I need to get my gear and the Duke owes me a drink."

He then turned and headed back into the clinic, leaving them alone as Suzaku flushed in even more anger at being dressed down by someone who had no idea what it was like…

"He has a point, Suzaku," the Duke said, causing him to whirl around, his anger refocusing, "you need to think before you act, but I think he put it more succinctly than I ever will."

He then shrugged, smile back on his face.

"But all's well that ends well, you rooted out some Black Knight terrorists, made your grand debut, complete with a basic policy, and no one is dead. All in all, a good day."

It was hard for Suzaku to bite back at the Duke, because to be honest, now that the adrenaline was wearing off, a part of him agreed with the observations, the part that he really didn't want to listen to under any circumstances.

"Now, the Colonel and I need to have a chat with the Doctors Kobayashi about something, Suzaku, you would be wise to have yourself checked out by Corporal Jiminez, he's currently the gentlemen hanging over to the right of my shoulder and about twenty meters out."

Suzaku spied the man that the Duke was referring to, but he was more focused on what the Duke would want with Yuki's parents.

"Don't worry," the Colonel said, seemingly sensing Suzaku's thoughts before he gave words to them, "Colonel Anderson and I have been wanting to have a talk with whoever was in charge of this facility since we became aware of it a day ago, we wanted to use this as one of the loci for our program to start funneling in food, medical supplies, and other necessary items into the ghettoes. Now that we have a face and a name, now is as good of time as any to make contact."

"But…"

"If you want to know more of our plan to stabilize the area, maybe you and the Duke should join the Colonel and I over dinner tonight, we'd be honored to have a Knight of the Round and a former student join us."

"Sadly, I must turn it down, I have other things to attend to while I'm here," the Duke said, keeping that smile plastered on his face as he waved a dismissive hand, "however, the Baron here would be delighted to do so, I think he would like an idea of the situation in the ghetto."

The Colonel looked expectantly towards Suzaku.

_What was he to say to a man who he more than likely owed his life to?_

"Of course, Colonel," he said, "once I get myself looked over and my matters here resolved, I would be honored for you to host me."

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"Mom, Dad," Yuki asked cautiously, entering the door just before the Knightmare pilots had begun their banter.

Both her parents turned to her, still picking up some of the items that had been strewn along the floor, her father looked away from her again the expression on his face telling, but her mother had a more sad expression on her face.

"I'm sorry," she said quietly, "I didn't know I would cause this. Suzaku…he just wanted to reunite me with the two of you."

Her mother looked at her for a few moments, before placing the debris down and walking over to her, slapping her.

"Don't ever apologize," she said sternly, before wrapping her arms around her.

"I'm just grateful you came back," she said, "we had given up on ever seeing you again and to just see you this once. I don't regret one moment of it, and your father doesn't either. You just know how he is."

She nodded mutely, just reveling in the feeling of the warmth of her mother again, it was a dream that had kept her going for so long, and to have it finally happened, after she had all but given up…

"But the clinic…"

"Will survive, we're the only one around here," she said, "once people cool down, they'll come back for treatment, we're the only thing left for them to turn to. But you need to go…spread your wings. I hate that we couldn't give you the world, but…"

"I promise I'll be back, I want to tell you everything," Yuki said, trying to keep herself from crying, goddamnit, she had spent all this time putting up this mask of not caring, of acting, all for the sake so people could not see how she truly felt, and now, that mask lay shattered at her feet.

"I know you will," she said, "and I hate letting you go. But there isn't a future here…not for a bright girl like you with so much promise. Please, just go with him, at least you'll have something, even if it is a life of servitude, you'll at least get to see and experience things that people can only dream of."

"Mom, you said it was back," Yuki said.

Her mother went silent, letting her go, just shaking her head.

"You saw them, didn't you," she said quietly, "the coughs, the shivers…Isamu doesn't think herbs are going to cut it anymore, and what medical supplies we had," she trailed off, before shaking her head, "just forget it. Please, just go with them. I know you want to go with them."

The door opened, causing the three of them to focus on the newcomers.

"Go, Yuki," her mother whispered in her ear and lightly pushing her, "make us proud."

Yuki numbly nodded, before starting to walk past the two men, who she know recognized as the Duke of New Haven and the Colonel from before, KJ was now behind them, and his hand was held up, signaling for her to stop.

She paused, confused by what was going on.

"Doctors Kobayashi, I presume," the Colonel's voice boomed, as her mother and father stood together before the man.

"What is it you need, Colonel," her father asked, his voice cold as if dreading what was coming next.

"It is not so much what I need," the Colonel stated, "but I came here to ask, what do you need?"

"Excuse me," there was some surprise in her father's tone.

"I have been placed in charge, along with Colonel Anderson of the Twentieth Knightmare Corps, with the policing of the Tokyo area, included in those orders were special instructions to focus on the ghetto areas. As such, I had been given a level of levity to meet that objective. Therefore, I wish to ask of you, if we can use your clinic as a point to where we can start distributing food, medical supplies, and other necessities to the people of the ghetto."

A gasp sounded, and it took a moment for Yuki to recognize the gasp had come from her as she watched the surprise appear on their face, before being replaced by wariness.

Of course, they had every right be wary, she realized, this was the first time any Britannian was making an offer to assist the ghettoes, it could easily be treachery to set it up for something worse.

"Please, don't take this the wrong way," the Colonel continued, "my orders are to pacify the ghettoes, and I intend to fulfill those orders. But my men are not nobles or purebloods, we're primarily commoners and Honorary Britannians, so we know how it feels to be on the receiving end of…policy. That is why I am approaching you, as I will approach several other individuals with this same offer, I have no doubt some might turn it down, but I am hoping that we can reach an accommodation."

He then took a breath.

"Unofficially, and I hope you keep this to yourselves, I wish to attempt to make the Baron's promise a reality. It is a lot less wasteful to build than it is to destroy."

It was a good while before either of her parents spoke, because they were looking at each other, and then back to the Colonel and the Duke, as if they were trying to believe that any of this was happening.

"Colonel Hunter…are there any strings attached to this," her father finally asked.

"There are none, all that will be done is each convoy into the ghetto will be escorted and distributed by men in my unit until such a time as to which I can turn it over to the people of this ghetto. But that requires a level of trust before I allow the dispersal of material that in the long run will amount to tens of thousands of Britannian pounds to be handled at the local level."

"We need doctors," her mother blurted.

"You're referring to the latest strain of pneumonia to break out in the ghetto," the Duke asked, "the Colonel and I had been discussing that before our…summons. There might be a solution for that."

"Right now," the Colonel continued for the Duke, "I can loan a few of my medics and doctors to help with triage as we start bringing in medical supplies, but the Duke financially supports an organization that furnishes doctors for Areas in need. However, because of the classification of Area 11, I apologize, Japan, as a Correctional Area under Britannian Area designation, they have been hesitant to loan trained specialists to the area for fear that…certain entities might try and take advantage of such a gesture."

"However," the Duke interjected, "Director Morgan has agreed to send several teams of physicians and specialists to the area, the first transport should be here in a few days, with the rest coming in over the next month. It won't be enough to stem the tide until we can bring establish a permanent hospital, but it will at least hold the line until that happens."

"I'm sorry, but this is all too much, why are you even doing this, we're…Elevens," her mother stated, shocked, "we don't have any rights under your laws."

"Just because the law says you have no rights, doesn't mean you can't be treated like human beings," the Duke said quietly, "it might not be apparent, but there are people within Britannia who generally care about the plight of Numbers, we might not be the majority, but we have strength, and what has gone on here in the last three months…What's gone on here in the last three months."

His eyes flashed as his hands balled, the smile was gone, on his face a mask of righteous anger.

"It's high time for us to try and start fixing the damn problem instead of adding to it."

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"Dear Brother, to what do I owe the privilege," Guinevere su Britannia greeted Schneizel, not rising up from the cushioned chair, a handful of female attendants were situated behind her, ready to serve her any need. He took the offered chair across from his half-sister, as a servant placed down a tea for him.

He took the tea and sipped from it, noting how it was made exactly to his specifications, a thimble of crème and just a pinch of sugar.

Of course, he smiled inwardly evenly as he kept his mask impassive, it was all a game his half-sister played and played well, she knew perfectly well by now what he preferred to drink, her spies has informed her.

While she would never have the keen mind he had or the conviction Cornelia had, Guinevere in her own brutish way, had a firm grasp in manipulating people to her goals. Albeit, she used greed as her weapon of choice and it was a powerful weapon in Britannian society, where upward mobility was predicated on pleasing their ranked superiors.

It made Guinevere's power base more numerous than his own and if a fight for the throne broke out now, it was at best 50/50 odds that he would prevail in a quest for the throne if the Emperor were to pass tomorrow.

But that same strength that she was reliant upon was a double-edged sword and it was obvious that the Marie Antoinette of Britannia was starting to feel the pressure with this latest move she had done.

"Exquisite," he murmured, placing the cup back on the saucer and then on the table, "you always seem to know exactly what I need, Dear Sister."

It was always a dance with her, the exchange of compliments that descended into politics, which, with Guinevere, always was torturous because she could be so damnably bullheaded like father.

He could just dry up her funds with the stroke of a pen, but that would result in Guinevere doing...unwise things, and frankly, he had his hands full dealing with the aftermath of the Tokyo Settlement, it would be ill-advised to break the unspoken truce between himself and her so she could jump into the fray and crater his plans.

"I apologize for awaking you at such an awful hour but I felt it was necessary once it came to light certain...events having transpired that require my meeting with you."

They of course both knew Guinevere hadn't been sleeping...well, sleeping in the definition of what it was.

I wonder who it is this time, Schneizel thought, last time it was Earl of Rochester...

"When the Prime Minister demands an audience, it would be discourteous to deny it," she purred, uncrossing and recrossing her legs the other way.

Schneizel kept his face impassive at the flash of alabaster skin, his eyes still focused on the grey eyes and smiling face of his sister, even while he felt Kanon's rage at such a blatantly suggestive move on his Prince.

Sex, money, power, those were the weapons of choice her sister used, it didn't matter who she used it against, as long as she got what she wanted. And he was no exception to that rule.

He merely nodded in acknowledgement at the devious play, giving a twitch of his lips into a smile of amusement as he reached to reclaim his tea and sipped it again.

It wasn't that he wasn't affected by the sight and invitation, it was just worldly pleasures were a distraction, in many ways, he chuckled mentally at the thought, he was as fucked up as the rest of the family, despite what everyone thought.

"Indeed," he replied, "it concerns Baron Kururugi."

An eye twitch was his only deviation in the mask his sister wore.

"Leave us," she commanded to her attendants as they quickly obeyed her order, leaving the room.

"And what does Baron Kururugi have to do with your visit, Dear Brother?"

"Come now, Guinevere, you and I both know you used Odysseus's position to change his barony from Narita to the ghettoes. I would like you to cease and desist any more interference."

The smile was gone as she leaned forward.

"That monkey insulted me in front if the entire Court, I'm merely paying him back. What does it have anything to do with your concerns?"

"Kururugi's affairs are my affairs."

She stared at him for a moment, before she began laughing.

"Oh my Schneizel, I didn't know. I'm hurting your new toy, how cruel of me."

She kept laughing a few more moments before sighing and wiping away a tear.

"I didn't know you had a thing for Numbers," she continued, "still that doesn't excuse his impugning of my honor at the ball and I demand the balance be paid. That is unless you can give me something to...forget it?"

And here it comes, he mused, keeping his smile.

"I've noticed you've been quietly working out a treaty with the High Eunuchs of the Chinese Federation. We both know to seal the not there needs to be a political marriage, which might work for you if the Empress was actually Emperor," she digged, "it might however work if we arranged, say, Odysseus to wed with the Empress."

The smile faded as if he had taken offense to the insult as he placed down the cup.

"What I do in my spare time has nothing to do with our discussion," he warned, "just like I don't delve into your frequent trysts with the various nobility."

"Touché, Dear Brother," she returned, suitably chastised as Schneizel sighed as if giving up.

Of course, Odysseus being wed to Tianzi was the plan in the first place, Schneizel thought lazily, of course it's be a boon for Guinevere if that happened, just as it'd be a boon if he was successful in making China into a protectorate of the Empire. But to throw a bone he already had planned to throw to Guinevere to protect his interests? That was the master stroke, and his sister was completely unaware she'd been had.

"You're right in that marriage to Tianzi does not interest me," he mused, internally smiling at adding to the myth of his supposed persuasion, "and Odysseus would be good fit for the equally submissive Empress. You make a valid point Sister, and I approve of it."

"Excellent," she clasped her hands together, "I'm so glad we can work out a compromise. Is there anything else you need, Dear Brother?"

"No, I apologize for bothering you."

She laughed again.

"You should be apologizing to Baron Graham, he's currently tied up in my bed, we were just about to..."

Schneizel waved a dismissive hand.

"Please Sister, I think I've heard enough. Good evening."

"Good evening."

She then got up and headed to the door, allowing the sheer nightgown to fall off her shoulders as if by mistake, though both knew otherwise and opened the doors.

"Girls, let's go, the Baron's been waiting long enough," her voice rang out as the doors shut behind her.

Schneizel stood up and walked out the other door with Kanon.

"Kanon, Baron Graham...he's married...right?"

"...Yes, Your Highness."

"Interesting," Schneizel mused, logging away that information for later usage.

They waited talking further until they were outside Virgo Palace and were getting into the car.

"Drive," Schneizel commanded, looking out the window.

"Where's Kururugi now," he asked.

"Area 11...with the Duke."

"We lose this round I guess," he sighed, "we'll wait until Europe to make a move on him."

"Why do you tolerate her," Kanon asked quietly, "you could easily undermine her at every turn."

"Because she has her uses for now, Kanon. She's a manageable annoyance. But if she ever starts becoming an existential threat."

He shrugged.

"She'll be dealt with. For now, let's just focus on Kururugi."

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Despite her best efforts to sleep, it just refused to come to her. Every single time age woke up covered in sweat the blood-soaked images from her nightmares reappearing every time she attempted to will herself to sleep.

So now she simply laid upon her bed, the cold, suffocating room making her feel even lonelier than she ever thought possible.

Part of her felt guilty for what she did to Suzaku, it was unfair to him that she had treated him so harshly. So badly that he had left for Japan not even twelve hours later.

Yet, what was she supposed to do a part of her argued, he killed Lelouch. Was she supposed to just accept it? Her brother was the only thing she had left and now she had nothing and she was stuck in the very world her brother was terrified of, a pawn once again.

But maybe she wasn't a pawn. In a lot of ways, while everyone believed her brother was intelligent, they almost always overlooked her, quite honestly because Lelouch was always there for her and she never had to truly apply herself. Now it seemed she could no longer afford that luxury.

But what was it that she could do? Everyone believed she was merely a crippled little girl with little to no value, and if Lelouch was right, then she would be discarded if she had no value, which meant she needed to prove her value.

She clenched her eyes as she felt out her body to that small little bundle of nerves and urged her body.

_There!_

Her big toe on her left foot wriggled as she gave a small smile. It was an improvement after all of these years, and something she kept to herself. She knew it wasn't something to make a big deal about, because it would create a false hope. Hope was a waste anymore, it was a liability. She needed to be strong.

She needed allies.

She flexed that toe again feeling that surge of exhilaration. It may not be hope, but it was something.

Small steps, that was what was needed, small invisible steps. But they would be necessary if she was to survive…and honor Lelouch's wishes.

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It was honestly nice to be out of his quarters for once without having to worry about the issues of being recognized.

Of course, he noted by the cautious looks he was being given by other members of the crew, that was because the crew knew exactly who he was and why he was on the submarine as Lelouch vi Britannia.

He had to hand it to Ohgi for suggesting the idea, it almost seemed too elegant for him to come up with. Maybe this change to him was increasing his capability.

But to the crew of the Tasogare, Lelouch vi Britannia's death was staged so he could escape with the Black Knights because Zero had deemed him a significant threat to Britannia as an ally. With Tohdoh and Ohgi confirming it, there was a level if acceptance to his presence, though it was tinged with the fact Zero was dead.

But that was a future issue, the current issue was Diethard and his persistent hounding for a scoop for just about everything. Lelouch promised him one...as soon as he figured out a good one that is. It wouldn't do well for Diethard to dig too much into it, he couldn't be trusted with matters of the Inner Circle, at least until he was comfortable.

Still, that wasn't his focus at the moment, it was instead Kallen and readying her.

Speaking of which, he thought, coming to a stop at the door of the mess hall.

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_Why did Lelouch have to wake us up with that stupid announcement_, Kallen thought exhaustedly as she looked down at her half-eaten dish of omirice as she fought to keep herself from passing out into her food.

It was bad enough that she was not a morning person, it was even worse now, with this Geass thing, she seemed to have become an insomniac, which now made for a lethal combination that was draining her dry.

She honestly wondered exactly how Lelouch did it, managing being the leader of the Black Knights, student at the Ashford Academy, and brother, all without just collapsing totally from exhaustion. That would probably be something to ask him when she saw him later.

"Morning Kallen."

Speak of the devil, she was too tired to even find amusement at the irony of the statement, as Zero, no Lelouch, sat down across from her with his own tray of the very dish she was currently eating. Only this time he had two glasses of orange juice.

"Here," he said, placing the glass on her tray, "you look like you need it more than me."

She gave a small smile, she actually liked this side of Lelouch, where he could be personable and not have to mask himself within the Zero persona. It was nice.

"I need it," she admitted, taking the drink and sipping from it.

"So," he glanced around making sure the mess hall was empty, "I have talked to Rakshata and she has arranged for a secret meeting between the Maharajah and myself."

"But you weren't planning to show yourself for the time being," she protested, "if anyone catches word."

"That is why the meeting will be low-key and between only a handful of people and myself. You, Kallen, will be part of a reserve force in the event something happens."

"But Lelouch," she stopped as she downed the rest of the orange juice, "I thought the original plan was for me to meet the Maharajah."

"I plan for you to meet him, but I think it would be better if I arrange it so there are no miscommunications. I trust you Kallen and I promise to make it up to you, but-"

_Why do I have to be so tired…_Kallen thought, her eyes starting to droop closed, _sleep….I just..just a minute while Lelouch is talking, his voice is so…._

"Kallen…hey…Kallen…."

But Kallen was already gone as she simply slumped forward in her chair, gone to the world.

* * *

A/N: Well, I got done a lot sooner than I expected, and boy was it a handful considering something like thirty-eight of the forty pages were all typed on the notepad of my phone while I was working.

Anyways, not much to say, there are a plethora of easter eggs all throughout the chapter, I'll be interested if anyone notes some of them. I hope you all read and review, it's a good way for me to tell if the direction I'm going sucks and I need to work on it, or I need to continue on the current path.

Until next time.


	10. The Sicilian Defense

Aria Neuf

**The Sicilian Defense**

"Alexander, welcome."

Earl Elend Stadtfeld offered his hand to the Duke as the younger man took it.

"It's good to see you, Elend. I apologize for being so tardy, I hope you didn't wait on dinner for me."

"Of course not," he scoffed smiling, "I know how you hate reheated food.

"Well then, straight to business," the Duke asked.

"I knew you would say that," the Earl, "let's retire to the study."

"Lead the way."

The Earl nodded as he led both the Duke and his majordomo further into the estate even as he hid his nervousness at the visit.

Even though he was now in his forties, he had the genetic luck that kept him quite healthy and youthful, he still looked his thirties, his short red hair was untouched and he had the build of a prizefighter. Combined with a sharp mind and a wit, he was the model Britannian.

Yet maybe his one fault was that his heart belonged to an Eleven and he had betrayed that heart for political convenience.

It was probably one of the worst mistakes he had ever made in his life. He caved into the pressure from his family and had forsaken Rain to marry the woman who his family had selected. It didn't matter that there wasn't any love, nor did it matter they had children. He had relented.

It was cowardice, he recognized now, he didn't want to give up what he had.

The worst part of it was that Rain hadn't even protested, she never pressed him for marriage, she had simply accepted it when he asked to adopt Naoto and Kallen in order to have heirs.

He couldn't even bring himself to look into her eyes anymore, especially after she had insisted, the only time she really had, to at least stay with Kallen and Naoto as a maid.

So he had buried himself into his work as a troubleshooter for various Britannian businesses, rarely ever returning home and only for a short time only to go to his next job. He had not been there when Naoto died and he hadn't been there when Rain had been arrested for being a Refrain user.

Instead he had buried himself in his work, working even more feverishly. Because as he had buried himself in his work, his politics had morphed from a moderate stance to reforming the system to prevent things like this from ever happening again

And it was during this time he was approached by an organization that went by the name of the Gestalt.

"How is your daughter doing," the Duke asked, causing the Earl's mind to momentarily freeze, "Kallen wasn't it?"

_Does he know_, he thought urgently, _how does he know?!_

"She's doing fine, she's right now staying over at the Ashford Academy with friends."

"That's funny, I was just there and I don't recall seeing her."

"She's staying at the girl's dorms," he responded the Earl stopping at the door for a moment, flashing a smile as he opened it and led the Duke inside the ornate study, walking over to the bar and pouring a pair of snifters of brandy before handing one to the Duke who was sitting in a leather chair before he took his seat.

"This is good," the Duke noted after taking a sip of it.

"I'm glad you approve," the Earl responded even as he hid his nervousness about the younger man before him.

He had been in the Gestalt since just after the Second Pacific War, so he had gotten to know the Duke over the years in Reformist circles and while he had become comfortable with the younger man, he knew beneath the mask he put up that made him so popular and charismatic was an exceptionally ruthless and calculating individual who schemed with the best.

"So what brings you here Alexander, it's not often you make a long-distance trip to meet with anyone."

"A few things actually," the Duke said, he tilted his head to look behind him to his Majordomo, who merely nodded and stepped outside the room

Once that was done, the Duke placed a small device down on the arm of the chair before tapping it, a small squeal sounding, he then took another sip of the brandy before swirling it contemplatively in his hand.

"We have a problem."

"Oh?"

The Dukes eyes snapped to him from the brandy, those eyes piercing him as he could almost taste the irritation radiating off him.

"I'm a fair man, Elend. I listened to my father when he told me I needed to allow all of you to operate as independently as possible against my better judgment. So imagine how disappointed I was to discover that two of my subordinates decided to either deceive or outright lie to my face."

"My Lord, I-"

"Here you are telling me your daughter is fine and at the Ashford Academy. Would you then explain to me why there is a detain-or-kill order for Kallen Kozuki, who just so happens to be the Black Knights ace pilot? Imagine my further surprise when I start digging further and I discover not only that, but a transfer order for one Rain Kozuki to a private rehab and detention facility in Yokohama. If I start digging further will I find you have also been funding the Black Knights?"

"What would you have me do," the Earl exploded, "you're sitting there casting stones at my family when you have none yourself. I've spent the last ten years working for your father and now you at the cost of my family. My son is dead, the woman I love is a drug addict, and my daughter is a rebel. How would you react?"

"I wouldn't put the Gestalt at risk," the Duke shot back, cooly, "all it takes is one screw-up and we're on the radar. I'm sorry I have to come down on you like this, but if you had approached me, I would have helped. No one is to go it alone, that is the pledge we all made. If Ruben Ashford had let us know he was hiding the Eleventh Prince, we could have used it and you would have been able to support your daughter without this deception."

The Duke sighed running a hand through his hair.

"I want you to promise you won't pull anymore stunts like this without conferring with me."

"I cannot guarantee you anything, Alexander, but I will do my best."

"That's all I ask for. Now, moving to business."

He took another sip.

"I want you to run Kururugi's barony."

The Earl sat there shocked for a moment. Was he really being asked to support the man who was literally his daughter's nemesis?

"I know it's awkward to ask you this considering the...personal situation between the Baron and your daughter. However, the success of the Baron's charge will further our agenda by years. If we can prove how profitable it is to integrate Numbers fully into the economy as something better than slave labor…"

"I see your point. I'll do it because it's the right thing," he finally said, "not for the Baron or for the Gestalt. This will probably require almost all the markers I've accrued over the years. There is one request I have though."

"Go on..."

"If you encounter my daughter out there, you will do everything you can to ensure her safety and return her to me."

"I'll do my best. Your daughter is quite skilled as a KMF pilot."

The Earl nodded at the compliment.

"Now then, there is one final issue that needs to be dealt with. Your wife."

"What about her?"

"The fact that she's sniffing Project Justitia."

He paled at that statement. Project Justitia, of all the things his greedy wife could be digging in...

"Alexander, I didn't know..."

He held up a hand to stop him.

"I know you didn't. The woman is the kind that would sell her children for a shilling. No, I know she did this behind your back. But that leaves dealing with her..."

Just then the door opened.

"Elend, why are you in this dusty-"

Whatever words she was going to say died in her throat, her eyes becoming wide as saucers as the Duke turned to look at her.

"Lady Stadtfeld. Welcome. You're just the person I wanted to talk to."

"You, you stay away from me," she stated pointing a finger at the Duke, backing up until she suddenly bumped into Keith Jenkins who seemed to materialize out of nowhere as the door shut. His hand just lightly brushed along her exposed neck for a moment.

"What did you-"

And then all of a sudden her eyes rolled up into her head as she was down on the ground, her body twitching.

"Oh dear, I do believe she is having a stroke," the Duke observed, no hint of humor in his tone, "must be all that has gone on in the last couple days has gotten to her,"

He shrugged as he looked to the Earl who was watching with a mixture of shock and, disgustingly, relief. He shouldn't feel something like that for another person dying, but there was no denying those feelings.

"I think that clears up the security risks and just so happens to free you up to spend more time with Rain. Just remember this for the future, Elend, I will not tolerate any threat to Project Justitia, Gestalt or otherwise."

The Earl focused back at the Duke for a moment before looking to the body of his wife, by now it was obvious that she was already gone.

"Now that that is out of the way," the Duke mused, downing the rest of the brandy, "it's time to get to work. KJ would you kindly."

"Of course, My Lord," the majordomo stated, stepping out of the room summoning a maid to call for an ambulance.

The Duke looked at the body one more time, his lips curled back in a sneer for just a split moment before he refocused to the Earl, his eyes scanning over him.

In the decade he had known the Duke he had never seen him like this, and to honest, it scared him somewhat.

What was it that Ruben said some of the chieftains in Area 18 called him?

That's right. The Wolf.

Seeing him like this now, he couldn't argue with that.

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He was exhausted, there was no doubt to that he thought as he slowly sat on the bed to the quarters that had been furnished to him by Colonel Hunter. The room of the officer's barracks was relatively spacious and he had a sneaking suspicion that it had been vacated for him.

The dinner had gone well, minus the fact Colonel Anderson had been unable to attend due to an incident in the Saitama Ghetto. Still, it was a welcome atmosphere compared to the outright hostility he had been treated to previously.

Still, it was too soon to draw full judgment on them, the Colonel seemed like an honest customer, but there was always room for an agenda.

Reaching up he massaged the skin where he had taken that rock earlier. It was still tender from the strike, it had luckily not needed any stitches, nor did he suffer a concussion as they feared. Still, every once in awhile it throbbed even as the quick heal did its work.

Sighing, he rose to his feet even as his body protested. As much as he wanted to just curl up and go to sleep, he wouldn't do it, he wouldn't soil the bed he had been loaned.

Moving into the bathroom, he divested himself of his Knight of the Round garments and neatly folded them before stepping gingerly into the shower and turning on the hot water, almost immediately thankful for his decision as the water washed over his back as he braced himself against the wall of the stall just luxuriating in the heat and pressure from the water.

It wasn't often that he allowed himself to simply stand under a shower head like this, his military training ingrained into him that two minutes was all that was needed to truly clean. And those were times he didn't have ice cold water.

His eyes snapped open, suddenly sensing another presence in the room instinct forced him to turn to face the unidentified threat.

Standing before him with a fresh set of clothes was Yuki and he had just provided her with a full display, he quickly turned away as fast as possible, fighting to hide his embarrassment as he closed the curtains, something he should have done before.

"What is it," he asked, red with shame.

"You've been in here for over an hour, My Lord," she replied neutrally, as if the sight of his nudity was nothing to her, "I was concerned and brought you a change of clothes for the evening."

"Thank you," he replied, he had been in here over an hour, he thought aghast, even as he grappled with the humiliation of being caught stark naked by her.

"When you get out, there's a development from the Saitama Ghetto Colonel Anderson wanted me to inform you on as well as a few other details."

This cause Suzaku to looked back towards her through the curtain.

"What's wrong with Saitama?"

"It's just an update," she replied, "I'll tell you more when you're done."

She then closed the door to the bathroom as Suzaku shut off and gingerly walked out of the stall and quickly got dressed into a shirt and shorts before opening the door.

Yuki's head was deep into a small tablet PDA, where she got it from...

"KJ," she said, as if reading his mind, eyes still locked on the device, "if I'm going to be your Majordomo and attendant, I need the gear. So I asked him for help."

"You're really fine with this," he found himself asking, he still wasn't comfortable with the idea of anyone serving him.

"Look," she started with a huff, taking her eyes off what she was doing, "I know you have this entire oppressor and oppressed distinction thing stuck in your head. You aren't oppressing me, and I sure as hell am not being oppressed by you."

"I wasn't saying that, it's just that we'll be deploying into combat areas, it's not exactly...appropriate."

"My Lord, I spent most of my teen years helping my parents patch together people who were hurt in the ghetto. Let's not even go into the fact I was a servant in Pendragon, where according to the witch I was under, the average shelf life of an Eleven in the Imperial Court was about four months before she becomes a sexual conquest for a noble or worse," this caused Suzaku to grimace, "so, please, don't try and protect me. If you want to solve that problem in your head, then why don't you just pay me for my services?"

"But..," he stopped, she did have a valid point about payment, though how much was the next question. But it still came across the wrong way the idea of him dragging Yuki from warzone to warzone where he or even she might be killed. She didn't deserve the path he was walking

"My Lord. You believe that people have a right to choose, correct?"

"Of course."

"Then let me choose. Quit being the gallant knight that will protect women when they don't want or need it."

"That's not what I'm trying to do Yuki, I just don't want you to get hurt because of me."

She paused her eyes narrowing as he felt the challenge there, but instead of voicing it looked back to the tablet.

"BTN broke the news of your Barony about an hour ago, there are currently seventy-four interview requests from local, Area, and national news entities. Responses have been surprisingly more positive than was expected, though it's believed many are simply in a wait-and-see mode."

Her mouth then twitched into a smirk.

"On the net, you're a something of a darling with the commoners, some are comparing you to the late Empress Marianne in regards to your accomplishments and rapid ascent from obscurity."

He could only grimace at the analogy, both at the implications of it, but also being compared to the mother of your best friend he killed in cold blood.

"What about Saitama," he aaked, changing the subject.

"Colonel Anderson issued a warning to all units concerning the abduction of young girl from the ghetto. He personally commanded the search and subsequent apprehension of a slaver group. They are currently being held at Camp Eliot."

A slaver group, he thought, remembering the discussion from this morning with the Duke.

"Were there any Britannians with them?"

She frowned, reading the tablet.

"He didn't say," she replied, "I'll send a query now."

As she started tapping out the query she continued talking.

"There is a demand from the ghetto for these slavers to be turned over to them for punishment."

That was unacceptable, Suzaku thought, if the incident from today was any indication, it would be a short punishment for them, with the endgame being death. The slavers didn't deserve that, but they needed to be punished.

"The query's ready, you want me to send it?"

"Just hold on a moment," he found himself saying as he retreated into his thoughts, something nagging at the back of his head. It was something important, and a possible solution.

He was working with a Barony with no real infrastructure, no services, and no judicial...

"Yuki, attach to it a question for the Colonel's eyes only. Ask him if there is an entry in the military regulations concerning the judicial administration of an area without existing administrative systems. I think there is an entry in the book, I just can't recall the exact wording off the top of my head."

She nodded as she kept typing, finishing up she looked up at him, waiting for his next order.

"Send it," he said, "is there anything else?"

"Prince Schneizel requests your presence for a video conference as soon as possible. Finally, Lord Bismarck requests your presence for a meeting with the Knights of the Round in," she paused as if looking up the time, "six hours.

"Wake me in five hours then. Is there anything further?"

"Just one thing," she said, "how long are you planning to stay in Japan?"

That was actually a good question. He honestly didn't know. He wanted to stay and get at least the groundwork going so he could at least have something running before he deployed.

"I don't know. I at least want to stay the week so I can at figure something out."

"I'll see to it then," she replied walking over to his uniform and gathering it up.

"I'll have this ready when you wake as well as some other clothes," she then informed him, " also, I know you are planning to use the Duke to help you and you have no choice...just, don't trust him, he's not everything he seems."

"Why would you say that?"

"Just a feeling," she replied, "everyone has their price. The smart ones just wait until the markers are just big enough to own you."

"I'll take that under consideration. Good night, Yuki."

"Good night, My Lord."

00000000000000000000000

Yuki sighed as she close the door to Suzaku's quarters and began walking down the hallway from his room. She wasn't surprised it had taken a bit of a verbal whacking in order to at least get it stuck in his mind that she was following him wherever the hell he went.

She hadn't lied to him when she had said she respected and wanted to follow him, in a lot of ways, he was hope at the end of a long and dark tunnel that she had lived through since Japan lost the war, living in squalid conditions, patching up people who were sick or dying. She had seen plenty of people dying in front of her with their blood on her hands. It was a life that had slowly sucked the life out of her until she had just replaced everything with a mask of impassiveness as she just wished to protect herself a world gone hellishly wrong so that a little girl could not have a normal life.

Her head perked up as her senses warned her to the fact she was not alone, ending her thoughts as she reached out, seeking out the threat.

Even though it was dark, almost immediately she knew who it was as she lowered her guard and kept walking past a hall and towards the exit.

"Hello Keith."

"Yuki-nyan," Keith Jenkins, the Duke's majordomo, replied playfully as he slipped out of the hallway and behind her, "you look positively fetching tonight."

"And you are the same asshole you always are," she retorted, "what do you want?"

"Just checking in on our intrepid little kitty who thinks she's a lion. You know the Duke is still very displeased for your little deviation in the contract."

"I saw an opening and I took it. You and I both know that sooner or later Guinevere would have me killed for the Baron's interest in me. She has a propensity of jealousy and it wasn't like you were learning anything from the Baron. Besides, I wasn't the one to break the good faith of the contract, your Duke was when he stopped giving medical supplies to my parents after the Shinjuku Incident without informing me."

"Too many eyes were on Shinjuku, it would do no one any good if it was discovered the Duke was supplying Numbers with medical supplies."

"And the contract offered no exemptions, you can blame yourselves for that oversight."

Keith stayed silent for a moment but she could feel the approval rolling off him.

Fact of the matter was, she and the Duke went back three years when she was approached by Keith with a job offer. It had been a really dark time for herself. Her parents had starting to despair as it was becoming increasingly difficult to obtain any type of supplies to keep their clinic going and people mended.

It was reaching such a point that she was considering selling her body just to buy some supplies off the black market. It wasn't that she wanted to, but her parents had always raised her on the idea of sacrificing for the betterment of others and if it could at least save some lives, she'd do it.

Yet it had been that fateful day when she had been returning with some herbs from an underground site that Keith had literally materialized out of nowhere. At first she had thought him a rapist or a murderer preying on young girls until he made her an offer that honestly, she couldn't refuse.

In exchange for medical supplies given to her parents, all she had to do was become the eyes for the Duke in the Imperial Court as well as doing some "errands", which varied from simply observing to more...physical interactions.

So she had taken the job, almost immediately supplies arriving for her parent's clinic. Her parents had been ecstatic at the mysterious supplier, there'd been so many times she had felt the sacrifice she was making was worth it just to see them smile.

During that entire time, Keith had been preparing her for the job. So when she was "abducted" two years ago, she was ready for the job given to her.

But just because she took the job didn't mean she was completely attached to it. And after the first year she was growing increasingly leery that the world was closing in on her and had sought a way out. That was where Suzaku had come in. She knew that the Duke could not risk having his little operation exposed, so when she had caused that scene, she had known she would be placed as eyes for the Duke on Suzaku. Though, she wasn't planning to do even that.

"Careful Yuki, you're playing a very dangerous game disobeying him again. Your loyalty-"

"No, my contract, which was nulled and voided the moment you pulled me out to spy on Suzaku was the only thing I owed the Duke," she replied firmly, "my loyalty is now to the Baron."

"You think you are a fierce kitty now, Yuki-nyan, now that you have your freedom," there was no malice in his question, only amusement.

"I prefer having skin in the game instead of being led around by the nose. Your Duke owes me that much after I saved his life."

"My Lord has not forgotten the Salim Incident and the debt he owes you for it."

"Good, because you can tell him that I'm calling that debt in. I'm done being his gofer."

She could see him raising his head up in the shadows as if listening to something, it was then she spied a small green light by his ear. Almost immediately she recognized that they weren't alone in their conversation. Which only meant one thing...the Duke had been listening the entire time.

"Very well," Keith stated, "in honor of your newfound freedom: What do you want?"

"What do you mean," she asked, confusedly.

"Oh come now, we both aren't dumb, you are in possession of information the Duke is quite keen to tap into, since you seem more loyal to the Baron..."

"Not for sale."

"And here I taught you so much," he said with a sigh, "we'll come into possession of the information one way or another Yuki. This way you can actually profit from providing us with information that won't harm the Baron."

She bit her lip. There was no doubt that the Duke would come to any information they request of her sooner or later, he always seemed to have so many sources of intelligence...but could she again do it and inform on the man she now serves. Even if the information proved to be benign, information always had a usage.

"I will let you filter the information and if you feel that it's a threat to the Baron we will provide you the purpose of the information before you decide to provide it or not," Keith continued, "take into account though, how pivotal the Baron is in the scheme of things. Depending upon his actions and successes here and abroad, the Reformists can use him as a springboard to put on the floor and pass pro-equalitarianism legislation for the first time in history."

She had known that Suzaku was important, but not that important.

_But if he is that important..._

"Fine, but the Duke won't like my price. I want him to support the Baron's reconstruction fully...with not a single string attached that he can use against Suzaku in the future. No exemptions. The Baron shall owe the Duke nothing. You can take it or leave it."

Keith grimaced.

"Yuki-nyan..."

_That was IT! THREE YEARS she had dealt with damn nickname…_

"You can put that in writing along with a pledge that you will refrain from adding that...thing onto the end of my name. It's Yuki."

He sighed listening to the Duke on the end of the other line before tapping it off.

"Duke says it's a deal, but he will hold it to you that you don't renege on your deal this time for any reason or there will be repercussions."

"I plan to hold my end, just make sure he does his."

Even in the relative darkness, she could see the flash of white of teeth as Majordomo's smile, as he walked up, her guard snapping up, but then it dropped as he lightly tossled her hair.

"I knew you were a special one the second I laid my eyes on you," he said pulling his hand back as she glowered at him, "still a bit rough around the edges, but that's something you smooth out over time."

"Thanks...I guess."

"Well, I better be going. Got to fly back to the homeland and deal with some pressing concerns for the Duke."

He opened the door past her as he stepped out.

"Oh, and Yuki, if you're going to be the majordomo to the Baron, you'll need to look the part."

He reached into his pocket and handed her a small flat rectangular case and placed it on the folded uniform.

"With that, I'll see you in a couple days. Try and not get too curious about things. You know what happens to curious kitties."

And with that he was gone, leaving her to continue to the drycleaners.

00000000000000000000000

"Nelly," a sing-song voice called out causing Cornelia to immediately pale as she looked up from a report she was finalizing. Her gut was already beginning to turn to ice in fear as there could be only one person whose mere voice could cause her such a reaction.

And that belonged to the light green haired woman in the attire of a Knight of the Round that appeared in the door a huge smile on her face.

"Nelly it's been AGES," Nonette Enneagram declared as she didn't even wait for the invitation, she simply walked into the room flopped herself into the cushioned chair across from Cornelia.

She looked past Nonette to where Alfred Darlton was standing

"I'm sorry Highness," he bowed, "but she insisted she wanted to surprise you and told us if we warned you she'd have us put to death."

"I said nothing of the sort," Nonette weakly protested a smile on her face as she changed the position in the chair to where she lounged on it like a couch, her feet over the edge as she inspected her nails, "that's slandering an upstanding lady of the court."

"Leave us," Cornelia growled, "shut the door, and if ANYONE gets within twenty meters of this door, I will personally flay them alive."

"Yes ma'am," Alfred responded hastily, taking the offered retreat a bit more nimbly tban he should.

As the door closed Nonette perked up looking around.

"Where's Gilly? I haven't seen that delicious man-crumpet around here, and he's usually by your side wagging his tail like a dog awaiting a treat."

"He's taken a leave of absence due to a disagreement," she said after a few moments.

"Because you won't put out? You're such a beast Nelly."

"What? No. NO," she responded disgusted, "we had a disagreement, that's all."

"Right," Nonette said pulling out her mobile and typing something on it.

"What? What are you doing?!"

"Texting Dorothea."

"Texting the Knight of Four what?"

"Oh, just that she owes me a hundred pounds on the state of you and Gilly's innocence."

Cornelia turned red at the same time paling in a mish-mash of terror and embarrassment.

"You're betting on my VIRGINITY?!"

"More like a lady's agreement than a bet," Nonette replied distractedly, "I actually feel bad for poor Gilly, all that delicious handsomeness and you've been blue-balling him for a decade, no wonder he keeps ramrod straight."

"We are not discussing this," Cornelia stammered trying to keep herself from turning into a cherry in color.

"Hey, I'm not the one keeping a gaggle of men who could easily be models in my stable. I mean, you got Gilly, those Darlton boys, and now you've added that Kururugi kid, who I think is quite fetching if a little underage, but when has that stopped any self-respecting lady.."

"Nonette."

"And Cornelia, you have the Duke of New Haven in your stable...NEW FREAKING HAVEN. You know how many girls would kill you for a night with that man. I still can't believe that this is the same guy that was that skinny, nerd kid that we drugged and threw in the Commandant's tub with that Miyazaki kid. The man is built like a GOD. How couldn't you get your flower pruned by that beast?"

"NONETTE!"

She looked up from chattering to see a beet-red Cornelia.

"You mean you turned him down," Nonette asked incredulous.

Cornelia, in hindsight probably one of the dumbest things she would ever do in her life, shook her head.

"Good God, there is still hope for you girl. We need to set you up a date...make it an expensive and get you a good dress and underwear. It has to be silk. It drives guys-"

"Nonette, please," Cornelia begged, trying to keep herself from just running out of the room in embarrassment, which was hard considering who was discussing the subject. Around anyone else, this would not be a problem, yet with Nonette, for some reason, she turned into a blushing school girl.

She could deal facing down an enemy horde without fear, but Nonette...

"Oh, okay," Nonette sighed, "but we need to have a girl pow-wow later about this. You're really starting to feed those rumors that you have a thing for Schneizel."

"That was a kid's thing," Cornelia retorted exasperatedly, "who the hell is spreading that rumor?"

"Who do you think?"

She sighed, "Guinevere."

"Not officially, but you know lady's gossip, even if you don't partake in it."

A silence descended between the two as Cornelia retreated into her thoughts concerning her erstwhile elder sister. Nonette took the time to rearrange herself upright in the chair, folding her hands into her lap,

"How's your arm doing?"

"Hmm?"

"Your arm, how's it doing?"

"Oh," Cornelia glanced at her arm distractedly.

"The quick heal's finishing up the mending process. It should be a couple more days until I'm fully cleared to pilot under combat conditions, it's still a bit tender to move about."

"I see," the green-haired woman responded.

"And how are you doing?"

"Better," Cornelia said quietly averting her gaze, "but I guess that's all you can expect. After all, I nearly lost Tokyo to the Elevens, then had it blown to hell from underneath me because of my incapability of putting the rebellion down. Losing Andreas and...Euphie," she shook her head before looking back to Nonette, whose expression seemed a bit sullen.

"I'm pissed, Nonette. Not broken. It wouldn't honor Andreas, or Euphie, or all that lost their lives in my command if I simply gave up. Besides, I have new responsibilities that I cannot shirk."

"Haven't you even taken the time to grieve?"

"I don't have time to grieve. Even if I did want to, which I don't, I can only imagine Andreas browbeating me for it," she said while smiling wanly.

"He would probably give you a good dressing down," Nonette agreed with a laugh, "Papa Bear Darlton, always more worried about his cubs than himself."

In spite of the pain of it, Cornelia found herself laughing along with Nonette, she knew he had taken an almost sadistic pride in wearing that name, though God have mercy if you ever uttered it in his midst.

"He always could get me to shut my mouth with a single look."

"You mean the 'rape' look'?"

"That's the one," she chortled, "just the way he gave that smirk and raised his nose just a bit so you got a bit of that chin. You knew he wouldn't do it in a million years, but there was just that moment when you couldn't help but think."

They both kept laughing for a time reminiscing at the man that in many ways for Cornelia had been a father figure to her more than her own father.

"I'll miss the old man," Nonette mused, wiping a small tear away as she finished laughing, "Britannia's a worse place without him."

Cornelia nodded in agreement, unable to put words to the storm of emotions she felt, it was a relief to know she could still feel like this, but still...

"I guess it's on to business," Nonette finally said, "I'm here to get your opinion on the Knight of Eleven."

"Suzaku," Cornelia asked a bit quickly, surprised by the question and quickly regretted it as Nonette's face lit up.

"No," Cornelia said, "he's not that way."

"The lady doth protest too much, methinks," she said with a cat-like smile, "no, I just want to know a bit about him since he's due a video conference with Bismarck, Dorothea, and myself in a couple hours. You know how personnel jackets are: dusty, methodical, completely devoid of what a person is like, I want to know what he's like."

"And you think I would know that?"

"Cornelia, I recognize your fingerprints when I see it. There is no way Alexander Knight would make such a bold and visible display, while forsaking his current status of parties and educating snot-nosed nobles in the art of war, unless he was asked by a certain purple-haired royal."

She grimaced at the observation, was it so obvious?

"So, tell me," Nonette said, leaning forward in the chair, "what's he like?"

What could she say to be honest? The most she really knew about Suzaku was what Euphie had told her, which was more a glowing account of his character than any legitimate summary, and what she had witnessed of Kururugi was quite limited, because frankly up until Tokyo she had found him nothing more than contemptible vermin.

"You won't be disappointed," she finally admitted, "when the cards are down, he won't let you down."

"That's it?"

She hesitated, wanting to still her mouth from saying what was forbidden, but she stood back and took stock, instead.

Nonette was a close and dear friend, a confidante. They had been roommates during their Royal Academy days where Cornelia had come to think of her in some ways as an older sister to look up to. Could she trust Nonette with the truth like this?

"What do you know about the Zero thing?"

"Other than Kururugi killed him," she shrugged, "it's a bit odd for a story, but I've heard worse, almost seems like a work of fiction, somehow Kururugi ends up staring down Zero by himself and all that…"

Cornelia hesitated for a moment before deciding to take plunge and lowered her voice.

"What if I told you the identity of Zero, but not only that, it appears Zero was a close friend of Suzaku's."

"You're joking."

Cornelia shook her head.

"Can you promise to keep this completely to yourself, as in never utter a word if this to anyone. If you do so, people will suffer for it."

"That's awfully serious, even for you, Nelly," Nonette murmured, "okay, I'll keep it between you and me."

"Zero was Lelouch."

"Lelouch... Lelouch, oh," her eyes widened as the implications hit her, "OH!"

She could only acknowledge it with a nod, her lips a pursed into a thin line.

"And Kururugi was friends with him?"

"So he claims. I have no reason to doubt him considering his reactions."

"Damn," Nonette simply stated, for once at a loss for words.

The implication was completely there. This was the first time since the Emblem of Blood that a member of the royal family had taken arms against the Empire, Nonette easily knew that, Cornelia recognized.

"So Kururugi killed him. No wonder the Emperor likes him. We drill into Honorary Britannians that royalty are beyond reproach and he goes out and kills one. Not only that but a friend. Small wonder he seemed disinterested in the ball. PTSD."

"I don't know if it's that. But I think he might just be the righteous kind. Not exactly great to be exposed to the Court's excesses if you're an idealist."

"Touche," Nonette returned.

A sudden knock at the door caused both of them to perk up as it opened.

"Big Sister," Nunnally asked as she entered, before stopping, "oh, I didn't know you had a guest."

"I was just leaving," Nonette said, "I got to get ready for that meeting," she then cast a meaningful look at Cornelia, "I'll talk to you later."

"Of course, have a good day, Nonette."

With that Nonette took her leave, leaving Cornelia and Nunally alone.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to impose."

"It's fine, Nunnally, you're not imposing. What did you need," she asked pleasantly.

"I wanted to ask you something. Can we go to the Gardens?"

That was odd, a detached corner of her corner of her mind thought, but she easily dismissed it.

"Okay, let me just inform Albert where we will be."

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Cornelia was grateful it was a beautiful day outside. This was really the first time she had been outaide with Nunnally, the added fact that this was the first time since Nunnally had been able to walk.

"It's nice outside," Nunnally said, causing Cornelia to refocus on the crippled teen.

"Yes, it is," Cornelia agreed, taking it all in.

The Aries Garden was once described as a wonder of Pendragon by a visiting Ambassador. Cornelia certainly could not disagree looking around at the bloomed flowers.

"Cornelia, can I ask why I'm being kept at the Aries Villa?"

Cornelia froze at the question, completely unprepared for that type of question. In fact, she wasn't prepared for anything along this line, not yet.

"For your protection," she defaulted to a true, but not necessarily correct answer. She wanted Nunnally safe and this was really the only place she could keep her that way.

"Why," came the plaintive reply, tearing at her heartstrings, "is it because of what happened to Mother and Lelouch?"

"Yes. I just want to protect you, Nunnally."

"Brother did the same thing. He kept me in the Academy to protect me," Nunnally sounded like she was ready to cry, "and he's..."

Cornelia looked away. She hated lying to Nunnally, but she knew the truth would be worse for her.

"I know, I just don't want you to get hurt."

"I don't want people protecting me," Nunnally said quietly, "everyone that tries to protect me keeps dying."

_Was that what you were really trying to do Lelouch_, Cornelia thought again for what seemed to be the hundredth time.

There was actually a cold logic to that, even if she was his enemy, and even that she was beginning to wonder. If Britannia was either hobbled or destroyed and Area 11 was reestablished as a nation, then Nunnally would not have to worry about being rediscovered and brought back into the fold of the Britannia machine.

"Dear Sister, please," Nunnally pleaded, "let me do something. I don't want to be stuck here. I want to be useful."

Nunnally knew how to push her buttons she realized, even if it was unintentional. In a way though, as her father's words rang once again through her head, a use might actually protect her from his wrath.

"Okay Nunnally, I'll see what I can do. If I can, what would you like to do?"

"I heard a few times from when the Darlton's were watching the news, but a lot of people were curious as to what it was like, the last seven years, I would like to tell them what it was like and how Lelouch was. I think he would like that."

Cornelia hesitated for a moment, but she found something resembling agreement within.

"I think he would like that a lot Nunnally. I'll see what I can do."

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There was a small part of Nunnally who felt this was all wrong, being so manipulative of her sister that only wanted to protect her. But that part was drowned out by the more coldly logical parts of her mind that noted that it was Cornelia who had lied to her in the beginning in order to "protect" her from the truth.

She could understand it, after all, it was any true siblings nature to protect the weaker one, but just because she understood it didn't mean she would not take advantage.

Maybe the surprising thing, though, was that for some reason, she enjoyed doing this to Cornelia. Not a spiteful type of enjoyment, but something else.

_Because this is my rebellion_, a thought flitted to the forefront, causing a smile to grace her features. She actually liked the sound of that.

_Maybe Lelouch and I have more in common than I thought_, she thought as she switched subjects with Cornelia to the weather and obvious retained beauty of the gardens that she could feel and smell.

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"Baron Kururugi, so nice of you to join us."

Suzaku nodded at the intended slight from Bismarck Waldstein, the Knight of One and commander of the Knights of Round.

"My apologies, Lord Waldstein," he replied, standing before the screen. Unfortunately, because of the infrastructure was still being put into place, the setup for this videoconference was placed in a small room that left not a lot of room for such creature comforts. That would get fixed next week, according to Colonel Anderson, but that time was not now, "the Duke of New Haven absconded with me yesterday morning due to being tipped off as to what my Barony would encompass. He felt that it would be smart for me to have my feet on the ground so I can get a firm grasp on what would need to be done."

His eyes roamed around the screen splits where three of the Knights of Round, Bismarck, Dorothy Ernst, the Knight of Four, and Nonette Enneagram, the Knight of Nine. They were the official "commanders" of the Knights of Round in terms of operational organization and coordinated between the Emperor, his Knights, and the various commanders that they would be working with. They are the brains of the Knights of the Round when Monica Kruszewski, the Knight of Twelve, was included. Her absence could mean a variety of things, many of them bad for those unfortunate to have irritated the Emperor.

"According to reports, it seems you got more than your feet on the ground," Dorothea Ernst, the Knight of Four, stated simply, her lips pressed in a frown of disapproval, "according to Colonel Hunter's after-action report, you went into the Shinjuku Ghetto with a single bodyguard and a Nmber servant with family still living in the Ghetto as Numbers. The fact that you have been on the vidcasts throughout the Empire just happened to escape you? And where were the rest of your Knights?"

"Duke Knight was arranging preparations for the ghetto," Suzaku replied, which was the truth, as far as he knew, though Yuki had noted to him that the hours seemed off, considering, "Baroness Harrington was still at Pendragon preparing the Knightmares for usage, including customizing them with Earl Asplund. I am unsure as to what Sir Swann is doing back in the Homeland, but the Duke assured me that there was a reason. As for Sir Miyazaki, he urged that I do not enter the ghetto without an appropriate detail, when I refused to heed his warnings, he did his best to protect me within his power as well as is responsible for saving my life."

"Baron Kururugi, what concerns me is the latter part of the report, submitted by Miyazaki himself. He stated, and I quote, 'Baron Kururugi surrendered himself to the terrorists over my protests in order to, according to him, prevent bloodshed.'"

Even though he kept his face straight, he could sense the annoyance in Bismarck's tone when he made that address.

"I'll just equate your decision to the head trauma you suffered during the incident," this earned an amused snort from Nonette, it was obvious that she didn't agree with that observation, "I hope that no further head traumas will cause you to make a comparably foolhardy decision in the future."

"Of course, My Lord," Suzaku responded.

"However, since it appears your protective Knight detail is underhanded at the moment, Sir Weinberg has volunteered to supplement them. He will be arriving with his Tristan this evening you time. I do hope you can see to that his hard work and voluntary nature is suitably rewarded."

"Just don't corrupt him," Nonette interrupted, causing Bismarck to scowl slightly at how she was undermining the serious discussion, "the last thing we need is for Gino to be distracted by things such as foreign girls, especially Elevens."

"Nonette, please," Dorothea chimed in.

"What? It's true. Put an enemy army in front of him and he can beat them alone, put a nice and cute girl, be Britannian or a Number in front of the poor guy and he will be swearing eternal love for them."

"That doesn't mean we should be discussing this here."

"He's the one who volunteered."

"Ladies," Bismarck said with a sigh, "can we focus on the Baron here? I sent Weinberg as a reward for the speed in which he acclimated to the Tristan and providing us with the data for future projects. The light duty of protecting a Baron and fellow Knight of the Round who has been suitably apprised as well as an opportunity to learn lessons for when he inherits his noble land is adequate reward, don't you think?"

A chorus of assents confirmed his prognosis as Suzaku felt like a fly in the wall, observing the idiosyncrasies of the relationship between the three.

"Moving on, considering it seems more than likely you will be spending the majority of your two weeks in Japan, I will lay out the current STRATFOR for the next three months."

_And here we go_, Suzaku silently acknowledged. STRATFOR, or STRATegic FORcast, was the operational plan for a Britannian military unit. In each instance of a published or briefed STRATFOR, it was pretty much Word of God the overall direction of the unit for time period laid out.

"With Lady Alstreim's Mordred coming online at the end of the week, that will bring our overall Generation 7+ Knightmare Frame strength to three. As such, I am assigning you to Task Group Orpheus. You, Sir Weinberg, and Lady Alstreim will all be attached to support Operation Xenophon."

"Further additions to our Gen 7+ assets will take place as follows. Sir Bradley is slated to receive the Percival in three weeks, I will receive the Galahad by the middle of next month, Lady Ernst will receive the Agravain in two to three months once the modifications to the Hadron System is completed. Unfortunately, Project Uriens and Merlin are being delayed so we can push out the others. For the time being, those without Gen 7+ KFs are equipped with custom Pre-Production Vincents."

"I'm regards to deployment orders outside of Xenophon. As soon as the Percival is operational, Sir Bradley and Lady Kruszewski will be deployed to support the Euro-Britannian's Operation Belisarius. Nonette, Dorothea, and I shall remain as the strategic reserve. Are there any questions?"

"No, My Lord," Suzaku replied.

"Very well then, Baron Kururugi, I'll let you go since according to your aide," there was a heavy bit of disapproval in his tone as he spoke that word, "has arranged another conference with the Prime Minister."

"Thank you, Lord Waldstein."

The link then died as Suzaku breathed a sigh of relief.

"I apologize," Yuki spoke as he turned to face her, she had spent the entire time out of the pickup listening in at his request, "but the Prince was fairly adamant for a timely meeting and I-"

To be honest, he still found it awkward the relationship of having a Majordomo, especially a female one, who was his manager. On top of that he had met her less than a week ago, yet for a reason he was still trying to fathom, he trusted her, even if to him this was awkward, even as she seemed to have put on a professional persona flawlessly.

Part of him was suspicious that there was a lot more to Yuki than she was telling him, yet at the same time, her steadiness steadied him even as he fought to keep himself upright in the storm.

"It's fine, Yuki. To be honest, I hate strategic meetings, thankfully it seems Lord Waldstein likes to be straight and to the point. How long do I have until Prince Schneizel?"

"Fifteen minutes, My Lord-"

"Suzaku," he corrected.

"Suzaku. There are some muffins outside if you wish to get a quick bite."

"Thank you, Yuki," he said after a moment, "I think I will."

00000000000000000000000

This. This was mildly irritating, Schneizel el Britannia thought to himself as he reflected over the information before him.

In a way he was grateful for the revealed information, because it provided him a glimpse into the network of a possible enemy, but at the same time it was disconcerting because it larger than he expected.

That's not to say it was a threat to him or Guinevere, but one would be an idiot to not remember how his father's takeover of the Empire was an alliance of interests, all it would take is for various interests to align under a common banner, and that required a royal.

Cornelia, of course it would come back to Cornelia, he thought irritably, the Duke's supporting Kururugi at Cornelia's behest, which means something has changed.

What that change was exactly, still escaped him, but he had it more than likely his actions in Tokyo and the incidents with the vi Britannias.

He wasn't sure exactly what Cornelia knew about the vi Britannias, but he was damnably sure she knew just as much as him, that Lelouch had not been killed by Zero, and as much as he had gleaned from Nunnally, Lelouch had been alive up until Tokyo. This left only a handful of possibilities and the knowledge of that created power. And in a period of intrigue, knowledge was as powerful as a division of Knightmares, it could make or break a run for the throne.

The prevailing question was how far the schism between himself and Cornelia had developed and was it salvageable.

_No_, he automatically thought, _I ordered the deaths of her men and herself. If there is one thing that Cornelia valued above those she cared for, it was then men and women under her command.  
_  
So then the question became what could he do to blunt her. Cornelia, unlike Guinevere was perfectly capable of making a change if it made sense. And with Kururugi saving her and her sudden allowance for a Reformist to work for her meant there was a possibility she was at least open to some moderate leanings. An especially disconcerting development, but not anything too worrisome…yet. That uniquely maddening qualifier that could make or break a plan if executed poorly was something that caused him a slight bit of consternation.

He couldn't kill her, even if she became that level of threat that required exquisite care, to kill a person was to admit your incapability to convert them to your side, it was the ultimate form of cowardice. Not to mention it'd expose him too much.

So that was off the table. So if he couldn't kill her, maybe he could hobble her image to where people wouldn't be so willing...

He smiled, that was it. He mentally jotted a note to explore the option further. It was low-observable and he could keep his hands free of the matter entirely.

A chime signaled causing him to refocus on why he was even pursuing this line of thought.

"Lord Kururugi, good morning," Schneizel greeted as the figure on the screen appeared resplendent in the uniform of a Knights of the Round.

"Good evening, Prince Schneizel. I apologize for delaying our meeting."

He smiled affably while waving his hand in dismissing it.

"Think nothing of it. I don't blame you for what you did. If anyone should apologize, it should be me for not preventing my sister's pettiness from causing you grief."

The Baron merely nodded in acceptance of the apology.

"Might I ask what you are planning to do with your Barony?"

"At the moment, I am exploring the options available to me. Duke Knight believes there will be a need for labor both skilled and unskilled for the rebuilding of the Settlement. I don't know is that is true yet, but I have several meetings scheduled throughout the day, one of those will be on the viability of such a scenario."

And they will tell you it's right, Schneizel thought a bit dourly, chalking another one to the Duke. In a lot of ways it would be a win for everyone, including Britannia, if the Settlement was rebuilt quickly. Of course, there were quite a few obstacles to it, but if they could be navigated.

"Concerning the Ghettoes themselves, what do you plan for their administration and policing? We do not need the ghettoes to remain hotbeds of malcontents and terrorists."

"Of course, Your Highness. Again, I will have to admit that most of those answers will be coming in the next few days. Suffice to say there is a lot of work that needs to be done and not a lot of time for me begin executing my duties. I believe you at least want me back to Pendragon next week for briefings and preparations for Xenophon."

"Don't press yourself too hard, Baron. The last thing we would need is for you to push yourself into a hospital stay. I was already planning to send you all the briefing and information packets so you would only be needed for the last stages of preparation. That should give you some more time."

"Thank you, Your Highness."

"Might I offer you access to some of my advisors to assist you. They have experience in these kinds of things."

"That is...very generous of you," Suzaku responded, "you really don't have to."

"No, I insist. I think Euphemia would be quite disappointed with me if I neglected helping you when I could."

Almost immediately Schneizel realized his mistake as he spotted that telltale signals of irritation, the setting of the jaw, the slight narrowing of the eyes.

"Thank you again, Your Highness," he said with a hint of frost in his tone, "I appreciate your generosity, as I am sure the late Princess Euphemia would as well."

"We're all friends here, Baron," he responded, smiling and trying to thaw the sudden change, it was almost like dealing with Cornelia, it was bad enough with her, last thing he needed was a valuable piece hostile to him.

"Of course, Your Highness," Suzaku replied stiffly, "just the memories and grief I have for the Princess are still quite fresh."

"Perfectly understandable. I'd be offended if there wasn't any uneasiness. Now, since you have a long day ahead of you and there really isn't anything pressing to go over, I will bid you good morning."

"Of course, Your Highness. Good evening."

Schneizel then cut the link, retreating back to his thoughts and plans, quietly redesignating the Baron into a category in which he should tread carefully.

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"So, India."

Villetta Nu, Baroness, head of the Black Knights Special Branch looked at the hand resting on her shoulder then to brown hair belonging to Kara Reese.

They had only known each other for a day and frankly, Kara had already burned away whatever goodwill she had for her second-in-command

It wasn't her professionalism that was the issue. In fact, for her it was a welcome change after the Purists, she was like a finely honed razor in terms of work ethic. No the problem was the fact that Kara was constantly in your personal space, either by having physical contact, or taking residency in your personal bubble. The rest of the team seem not bothered by it, but for Villetta, it seemed borderline sexual harassment the way Kara draped herself on you.

As was the way the hand was positioned, well it was just creepy to say the least.

"Yes," she responded as neutrally as possible, in spite of the hands position, "I remember there being an Indian woman in with the Black Knights who seemed to be in charge of their Knightmares."

"Rakshata Chawla...we taught her?"

"It appears so. But the part that caught my attention is her familial ties."

Kara leaned even closer over her shoulder, close enough to almost taste the strawberry shampoo that Kara appeared to use.

"She's related to the Maharajah?!"

"Distantly, but with the information you gleaned from...that guy, we now have a more complete picture of the Black Knights. Since they have lost Area 11, they will fall back to the one place they can: the one nation that had been providing material support to them."

"Makes sense," Kara replied thoughtfully, "and one of the few places we can't take any action without starting up a diplomatic shitstorm."

"Yeah," Villetta replied, though more for Kara's benefit than her own, she still was figuring out the limits of OSI's power and reach. It was arguably treacherous ground until she did so.

"However, don't we have a station in Mumbai," she asked.

"Yes. It's out of the embassy there. I graduated with the Section Chief. Why do you ask?"

"Well, we can't take a direct action, but couldn't we at least observe them and if we can, put pressure on the Maharajah to give them up."

"We'd be in position to snatch up or liquidate the leadership," Kara breathed, looking at Villetta, "for someone who was born with a spoon in her mouth, you seem to have this cloak-and-dagger stuff down."

She shrugged in response, offended by the insinuation that she was high-born, but then again, it made her wonder, Kara was thorough, why would she say that she was born with a spoon in her mouth when it was patently untrue.

"Just read a few of those pulp novels as a kid."

Kara laughed.

"Well, I'll hit up the Director with the idea, he's indisposed at the moment and the last person to interrupt his personal time got a tour down in Antarctica counting penguins. Why don't you head out for the night?"

That actually had a nice ring to it, considering she now had a penthouse in her possession. While she hadn't had it personalized for herself, it had the most expansive and luxurious bath she had ever seen, and last night, it had taken every physical effort to just pull herself out and go to bed.

And if that wasn't enough, there was the small swimming pool...

"I'll take you up on that," Villetta responded, pulling herself out of the daydreaming, she got up and started gathering her stuff into a bag.

"Well then, good night, and have a safe swim."

She spun around to question how Kara knew that, but she was already gone.

Yeah. There was no way Kara could not be a problem for her sanity

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"Kallen..."

"..."

"KALLEN!"

Blue eyes snapped open and groggily into focus as she took in her surroundings as her brain took stock of what was going on as she felt herself rising.

No, scratch that, she was in the cockpit of the Guren as it was raised to the deck of the Tosogare.

_How the hell did I get into the Guren, she thought, last thing I remember was breakfast with Lelouch and...and?_

"Kallen answer!"

"What," she asked, even as she heard explosions in the distance, her mind finally shaking off the funk that afflicted her.

"The meeting with the Maharajah was a trap," Ohgi's voice filled her cockpit, causing her attention to snap to razor-sharp focus, "somehow Britannia got tipped off and ambushed Zero."

"Where's Zero?"

"We don't know. I'm trying to raise Tohdoh, he and the Holy Swords were escorting him."

_Odds are jammer_, she thought unconsciously as the cobwebs disapeared, _if they ambushed them they will jam any attempts to call for help.  
_  
"Just give me where they were supposed to meet. I'll follow the explosions."

"Right."

She then launched out with the Guren ignoring the people in the dockyard staring at her.

The map then popped up on her display as she looked it over.

"Ohgi, get everyone you can around, Knightmares and Anti-Armor, I don't care, let me know what we got. And find out what the locals are doing."

"Roger Ka-"

Whatever Ohgi was going to say was squelched out by electronic noise, which meant that her inference was correct as the plume of smoke was closer to her now.

The only way that they couldn't contact Tohdoh was that he was being jammed, which since the battle seemed to be moving, meant that the jamming source was likewise mobile.

_Which means_, she thought as she changed her course, reading over the map and comparing where the smoke was coming from and where she initially ran into the jamming, _you should be right here_.

She came sliding around the corner and sure enough, there was her quarry, a Gloucester equipped with an assortment of antennas.

_Got you_, she thought as she grabbed it with her claw, flipping on the Radiation Wave Surger and being rewarded with it bubbling and them exploding.

"-is Chiba, demanding immediate assistance at Sector H3," a hysterical voice sounded in her cockpit, "Tosogare, where are you?!"

"Chiba, it's Kallen, I'm at your one o'clock and am inbound. Where's Zero and what's your status," she was surprised at how calm she sounded, despite the thudding of her heart in her ears.

"He's in my cockpit bleeding all over the place," her voice came back in a panic, "everyone else is dead and I have half the Britannian army after me, I need support now."

_I'm in charge_, she thought in horror, everything _rests on me. What do I do? What can I do?_

_You can lead, you stupid girl,_ a part of her railed at her, _Lelouch needs your help._

Taking a deep calming breath she refocused as she tasked herself to the duty she needed to fulfill.

"You're getting it, I need numbers now Chiba, you're still mobile?"

"Of course I am," she retorted angrily.

Kallen cut the channel and keyed in another.

"Ohgi, it's just me and Chiba out here. What do you have?"

She then passed by a fleeing Chiba hand already at the ready as she slammed a Sutherland into a building, swinging with her other hand the knife.

"I got four Burais and six RPG teams."

_Better than what I could hope._ she thought the plan that had been floating in her mind crystallizing as she got a tally of Chiba's pursuers.

_I don't know how long it will take until Lelouch recovers from his injuries, he never said. So that means I'm in full charge until-_

Her blood froze as warnings went off just in time for her to somersault over where a jousting lance would have bisected her as a Gloucester came out of a side street.

_Stop dilly-dallying Kallen! 16 enemy KMFs, got to get Lelouch to safety, but I can't risk the submarine, and I have at least four more KMFs myself._

"Chiba, head to Sector A2."

"Screw you I'm-"

"Shut up Chiba! A2, NOW, we can't lose the sub because you were a dumbass and led them to it."

"...Right."

"Ohgi, send everything to A2, arrange them in an open semi-circle with the bowl facing the northwest using the shanties as cover. RPG crews on the roofs at the lips and a hundred meters northwest of the lip. Chiba, you're going to slow down at Sector A3-"

"As i-"

"Not a lot, just so they can gather up, you got sixteen, I repeat, one-six Knightmares chasing you, we need every shot to count. Ohgi, Kento's with them right?"

"He's in a Burai, yes."

"He's in nominal command," Kallen stated, darting into an alley and bringing herself to a stop, "I'll try and buy him some time. He needs to use the fire zone and bottle them up there. Anything from the locals?"

"No."

"Then consider them compromised and likely hostile."

"But we'd be attacking-"

"An unknown group who may or may not be under orders to detain us. The fact they aren't acknowledging you means they are not likely friendly. We can beg forgiveness later."

She could feel the sigh from Ohgi before he finally answered.

"Okay."

"Keep me updated."

Taking a deep breath to collect herself, a part of her mind noted an odd lack of any foot traffic, bit before she could follow that further she logged it away as the mental clock she had been running since her lost contact counted down.

_Three, two, one..._

She then darted out of the alley, spin-kicking one Sutherland, grabbing the previous Gloucester's leg with her claw and ripping it away.

_Two down_, she confidently noted, as she righted herself up, using her harkens to clear the datum as she launched up onto the rooftops, using the landspinners and her balance to quickly head towards the ambush point.

_They should be making contact._

"Now," Sugiyama's voice sounded, as she immediately could see the explosions in the distance.

"Chiba, head for the sub now and het Zero tended to. Tosogare, how soon can you get underway?"

"Two minutes."

"Make it faster. Kento status report?"

"We got eight of them, another three crippled. The rest are holding back."

"Get your Burais back to the sub, RPG teams, if you can't make it back to the sub, drop your gear and disappear, we'll get in contact with you as soon as possible."

"We're going to run away," Tamaki's questioning shout caused her to cringe.

"Just get to the sub," she snapped.

They had rejoined up and were making a mad dash for the submarine when a beam of brilliant green cut off any further from Tamaki as his Burai exploded

"Tamaki," Kento yelled.

_No, no, no, he shouldn't be here, he CAN'T be here._

But there was no doubt as the Guren's sensors detected the approach of the oncoming Lancelot, which meant that he was here to finish the job.

_Over my dead body._

"Kallen, we're underway, you need to get back now."

_That wasn't going to happen,_ she thought bitterly_, if that bastard is here, he needs to be slowed down for Lelouch to escape.  
_  
She was not going to sacrifice anyone else to him. Even if it cost her life, as long as Lelouch escaped, then the fight for Japan could continue.

Taking a deep breath she braced herself for her next decision as every part of her urged herself to flee.

"Kento, get everyone back to the sub."

"Kallen, what are you doing?!"

"Buying you time. Ohgi, get everyone to safety, I'm sorry to do this to you."

"There must be another way!"

"There isn't."

"That's a pity," Lelouch's voice sounded, "and you were doing so well."

"Wha?"

The cockpit went dark, but was then quickly lit up with in bloody-red script "YOU ARE DEAD" with a tune that seemed to want to drive home that fact.

But it all did not register for Kallen as she became increasingly confused at what was going on.

That was when her cockpit opened and she found Lelouch, Tohdoh, and Rakshata standing on the edge of the catwalk beside her.

"I don't understand," Kallen stuttered, looking around, coming down from the adrenaline high of 'combat'.

"It's called a simulation, dear," Chawla was the first to speak, the smoke rising from her pipe, "and I am so glad it was. You were going to waste my dear child for something so foolish as a sacrificial lamb."

Her eyes then drifted to Lelouch, boring through him in both a question, and seeking to figure out how she could not even recall how she got into the cockpit of the Guren to begin with for this simulation.

It didn't seem Lelouch was interested in giving an answer as he merely stared back at her for a few more moments, as if inspecting her like a piece of artwork. It took Tohdoh coughing lightly to break the uneasy silence.

"Right," Lelouch stated, looking to Tohdoh, "it seems you were right about Kallen's leadership being one that manifests itself under fire instead of being taught. Still, it wouldn't hurt to at least give her some lessons and pointers. But I do have to say, I was right about her."

_Right about leadership? Lessons? Right about me?_

"Indeed, Lelouch," Tohdoh replied, looking back at Kallen, "she's a bit rough around the edges, but the potential is there."

"Okay, stop talking like I am not here. What test? How the hell did I get here? Why can't I remember anything?"

Again, that uneasy silence descended upon the quartet.

"I guess I should explain," Lelouch finally said, "Tohdoh and I had a discussion last night about you and how to figure out how to bring out your potential as a commander, but also figure out where you are at in capability so we can teach you. Tohdoh pointed out the possibility that you might be a commander who doesn't exactly exhibit the skill unless you are under fire. Since it'd be rather idiotic for me to put people under fire just to ascertain if Tohdoh was right, we devised a way to discover this, albeit…"

"Albeit what?!"

"It required a level of immersion that required deception. In this case, it required a state of sensory deprivation until the test could begin. To fulfill thiss an instrument of…chemical persuasion was required."

_Chemical persuasion_, she wondered, staring at him for a moment as her mind grappled with the description.

"_Here", Lelouch placed a glass of orange juice on her tray, "you look like you need it more than me."_

It was then that it clicked for her as dawning comprehension reddened her face as she sauntered towards Lelouch and slapped him as hard as she could, the resounding smack echoing in the hangar where they stood.

"You bastard," she snarled, then slipped through Tohdoh and Chawla and heading for the exit to the hangar, leaving the trio in another bout of awkward silence.

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"Great work tonight, Oscar," a woman said as Oscar Saint smiled pleasantly in response as he placed his violin in its case.

"Thank you Cherise," he said, "it was a good night for all of us. I think we are all looking forward to opening Mefistofele next week."

She smiled and nodded, placing her own violin in its case.

"You have a good night."

"Same to you."

He watched as she left, before finally locking the protective case and heading for the exit, humming a tune.

Even though he was the head of the Office of Secret Intelligence, there were few people in public who knew who the head of it was. Really, it didn't matter to them, just the idea of the OSI was enough to cause a reflexive ducking for cover. But then again, no one would believe that Oscar Saint, unassuming concert violinist, was the head of one of the most ruthless and secretive organizations in the world.

He refrained from chuckling, it was unbecoming of the persona he put up, that of a gentlemanly older man who was one of the premier concert violinists in the Empire. It just would be too much of a hassle for such a pointless expression.

Opening the door to the outside, he came to a stop as he quietly noted that it was raining now. An omen perhaps, he thought, as he tightened his jacket a little bit further to conserve his warmth.

"My lord," Kara Reese said, walking up beside him, holding out an umbrella which he gratefully allowed himself to be put under as they both walked to an idling car.

He then stopped as his phone suddenly vibrated, taking his focus off his surroundings and how elegant the rainfall seemed. Reaching into his pocket with his free hand, he pulled it out and flipped it open to look at the message.

A faint smirk crossed his features, his yellow eyes dancing with amusement as he read the singular line of the message before closing it.

The car door opened and he let himself inside as Kara stood in the rain underneath the umbrella, he tossed her the phone, her finely honed reflexes allowed her to capture it on the way up.

"You know what to do," he stated, not once making eye contact with her, as he then closed the door, and the car drove off.

Kara watched as the car disappeared before looking down at the phone, flipping it open to read the message.

On the phone, in five words was simply:

**LELOUCH VI BRITANNIA STILL LIVES**

* * *

Author's Note: Well, three weeks is fast becoming the standard for updates, in between all the time I spend writing on my phone, though I could have got this out five days ago, but I got distracted by Fire Emblem Awakening and Dead Space 3. They are both time consuming and fun. Of course, since I do almost all my writing on my iPhone at work nowadays, the amount of work I get done depends on both how I feel and how distracted I am at work. So three weeks might be the operating term from now on.

Now, for a series of clarifications, there will be a few minute changes to the previous chapters, this is due to my writing being that of an "evolving" format in that I don't generally preplan that heavily on the chapters. This allows a level of fluidity and comfort for myself when executing it. Now, because of this, there might be errors. In this case, there are a few, and I would like to warn upfront that those will be changed upon the completion of Aria Dix.

First and foremost, Operation Xenophon and Operation Belisarius. Xenophon has been hinted previously as the invasion of Normandy. However, due to the lack of accurate mapping of the Geass Universe, I am left in a bit of a quandary, as far as I KNEW up to a point, Britannia had recaptured Britain. I was wrong in that regard, so the changes that will take place in previous chapters is the reference of Europe will be replaced by references of the retaking of Britain. Apologize for that oversight.

Next, will be the numerous "usage" changes in terms of honoraries for people, I have been dressed down in private on some of the more inaccurate honoraries for nobles. I intend to have them cleansed once the next chapter is completed as part of my "review" process to both clean up and to fix any inaccuracies in the text.

Finally, the battle itself was pretty much completely written to the soundtrack of Downtown Tokyo Chase by Brian Tyler, it's an excellent track and I think it fits quite well with the overall atmosphere of it.

On another note, BatmanGenesis, thank you for the tip of the hat to my fic. It really means quite a bit to me, and I apologize for not making reference to you until now, it's partially a lack of trying to express my feelings for it, and at the same time it is the first time someone has actually referenced my work like this. It probably won't make up for the weeks/months of ignoring I have done, but thanks.

In closing, I'll just repeat the same tired and true "look forward to your feedback" and "my inbox is open if you have any questions/concerns/complaints", I think people are getting tired of it, to be honest. As am I, a lot of what drives me is both the story itself and the fact that it always brings a moment of enjoyment to read my inbox showing new followers/favorites/reviews, just adds an extra oomph to telling me I'm doing a good job.

Anyways, until next time, enjoy.


	11. A Fronte Praecipitium A Tergo Lupi

Aria Dix

A Fronte Praecipitium A Tergo Lupi

She had come to the conclusion that bubble baths were the gateway for sin. At least, the closest she could get to it through an innocent act like this.

Of course, when your bathtub could fit six people in it, such decadence was sinful, Villetta Nu thought with amusement as she was up to her neck in fragrant bubbles as the hot water relaxed her exhausted muscles.

For a girl who had spent almost half of her life in a land-locked research facility with her parents where water was strictly rationed, water had assumed an almost mystical quality to it. When the military had required a swimming course, she had not only embraced it, but she had grown to enjoy every moment she could immerse in it.

So when she had discovered her penthouse not only had an enormous bathtub but also a swimming pool, she had embraced it unequivocally. She spent two hours just swimming laps and floating freely in the water before she had taken herself out and drawn herself a bath.

It still was a lot to get used to, a girl who could only dream of such extravagance to one who literally lived it now. Quite a leap forward.

Of course, the requirements to reach this point...

She lowered her head further into the water as she retreated into her thoughts.

She still didn't know to think of herself after what happened with Ohgi. The soldier part of her recognized him as the enemy and lauded her for her actions. The problem was the human side of her that could not wash the look of shock on his face as she had shot him in cold blood.

If she didn't remember her time as Chigusa, then her actions wouldn't matter. But she remembered everything, the kindness, the care, everything he had done for her when she was at her weakest. It tore at her whenever she dwelled upon it, because, after everything, she valued her humanity and she was hard-pressed to find anything good in her decision.

Yet here she was, enjoying the fruits of that decision. Obedience to duty had gained her a barony, yet duty could not wash away sins, real or perceived, at least for her.

_I wonder how he is doing_, that errant thought flitted through her head. She frowned deeper at the rebellious thought, inwardly irritated that it would come up at all.

The last thing she needed was Kara to detect any indecision on her part. Even with her behavior, Villetta was wary of her power. She didn't know what it could do, but if she could use it to read a captive, she shuddered to think if that demonic eye were cast upon her.

_But she isn't here_, that rebellious part of her noted to her chagrin, _go on, think about him. It won't kill you. Besides, he might be in India and if he...  
_  
_Silence you!_

She sighed, what could she say? Hey_, sorry for shooting you, but my loyalty is to Britannia, wanna date?_

She snorted in wry amusement, some bubbles shooting up into the air.

Yeah, that'd be real romantic, even if she could ignore the fact that a. He was an Eleven and b. He fought under the flag of an enemy.

Oh well, what are the odds of going to India?

Suddenly the door to the bathroom flew open causing Villetta to shoot up to her feet as Kara walked in.

"What the hell are you doing in my home," she demanded, "give me one good reason..."

"Get dressed," Kara said, grabbing a towel off the hamper and tossing it to Villetta, "wheels are up for India in an hour."

She caught the towel and wrapped it around her body, anger quickly dissipating into confusion.

"What's going on?"

"The Black Knights are in India, but that's not all."

She reached into her pocket and extracted a phone, tossing it to Villetta.

"Check the message," she said, giving Viletta one more lookover before heading back to the door, "I'll be outside."

Villetta flipped open the phone glancing at the message on it.

_It can't be_, she thought, her eyes widening, it's not possible!

She quickly followed after Kara, who was in the massive living room after wrapping another towel around her hair.

"Is this real?"

"It's from our source within the Black Knights, they're trusted."

"So the Baron lied."

"No, he didn't," Kara replied irritably, "he honestly believes that Zero is dead. I was observing most of the time leading up to the awarding of his Barony, there wasn't any deception."

"Geass?"

"Of course," she replied, "the Director has ordered us to India to confirm this information."

"And then?"

"We'll get further orders after confirmation," Kara responded.

_Shouldn't we then pursue and eliminate them_, she thought, _that's our job. Why do we need further orders after confirmation?  
_  
But she held her tongue, knowing such a question at this point might be problematic at best, disastrous at worst.

_Well, at least I packed a travel bag_, she thought as she turned towards her bedroom.

"Give me ten minutes."

_Well_, she though a bit wryly, closing the door to her bedroom and sought some clothes, _be careful what you wish for, Villetta._

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"Oh man, flying fourteen hours was such a bad idea," Gino Weinberg, Knight of Three, miserably intoned as he brought his Tristan on final approach to the prescribed landing location outside Tokyo, where the current garrison was based.

_Of course, no pain no gain_, he thought, quickly dispensing with the negative. Here he was in Japan, half the world away from his overbearing family and getting to see the country his former maid had spoken so fondly of around him.

That was a better memory, he thought as he transformed the Tristan out its Fortress Node and brought it to a stop, following the Knightmare Frame director into a hangar before sidling it into a cradle and powering it down.

Sighing, he activated the cockpit release hatch, allowing for it to slide back out and exposing him to the cool air of Japan. Taking a deep breath of the foreign air, he stretched out, feeling the kinks in his body protest as he worked them out.

"It's so good to be back on terra firma," he declared, more to himself than anyone in general; various technicians began scurrying around the Tristan as he put his foot in the rung of the winch ladder and allowed it to lower himself to the ground, his eyes searching the crowd.

_Suzaku isn't here to greet me_, he thought to himself, plastering a smile on his face when his feet hit the ground.

Smiling was, in his way, a rebellion against his family, when the maid he had fallen in love with had been beaten and then tossed into the streets in front of him, it had been the only way he could strike back. They then pushed him to act his status. Since then, and even after he had run away to the military, his cheerfulness and smile were as much a weapon as they were a part of him.

Well, that and being a Knight of the Round allowed him the ability to lord over his parents like nothing else.

"Sir Weinberg?"

He spun around to the source of the firm, yet distinctly feminine voice. He almost double-taked at the woman before him.

"Yuki Kobayashi," she said over her square-rimmed glasses and held out a black gloved hand, "I'm Baron Kururugi's Majordomo."

_Maybe the flight was worth it_, he thought, taking the offered hand, giving her a lookover. He noted how she returned his look levelly as she seemed to acknowledge the pass.

Even with all the Britannian trappings of clothing and looks, she still seems to retain the fact that she is an Eleven with those glasses, he noted appreciatively, remembering the scene from the ballroom. He had heard that Kururugi had taken her up as his majordomo, he just hadn't expected her to fit in right away. Still, he could understand the rebellious streak, those not in the know wouldn't notice that the glasses she wore were of a pre-invasionary Eleven style.

"The Baron regrets not being here to greet you," she said, keeping eye contact, a serious faux pas considering she wasn't even an Honorary Britannian, "but he could not extract himself from his meeting with Earl Closter and Baroness Fell concerning crash reconstruction of his barony."

_No wonder he didn't greet me_, Gino thought. Earl Denarius Closter and Baroness Elissa Fell were considered among the foremost experts of Area construction. Though, he did find it odd, considering those two were hardliners. But then again, when there is money to be made, they had a tendency to make exceptions.

"No problem," he replied cheerfully, "it's not like I gave him a lot of warning that I would be here."

She looked at him for a few moments, obviously to him trying to discern whether his cheeriness was an act or not, he wondered exactly how she was running it through her head as she considered it. He knew that for any of the Knights of the Round, he was the most sociable, but that wasn't saying something when your leader was a sourpuss and killjoy like Bismarck.

"Right," she murmured, reaching up with a finger and adjusted her glasses, the light reflecting off it slightly with a small glare, before glancing at the tablet held in the crook of her left arm, "then if you will follow me, I'll take you to someplace you can freshen up. The Baron has an opening in about an hour where he's dining with Colonel Anderson, would you like to join them?"

"Thanks, but no thanks. I wouldn't want to intrude on the Baron's time with the Colonel about the Saitama incident."

She stopped, looking again at him, now with narrowed eyes with suspicion.

"You're reasonably informed," she noted.

He flashed an award-winning smile.

"I like knowing what I'm getting into."

"Of course. Then I will arrange for a meal to be provided. What would you like?" she asked, looking again to the tablet awaiting him.

"You," he said half-jokingly, watching her head snap up.

"Excuse me?"

"I was asking if you wouldn't mind joining me for dinner," he reiterated, "you have to eat and I would like to eat something other than the standard fare."

She looked at him levelly again for a moment before looking back at the tablet again.

"If you will follow me," she finally said, turning and leading him further away from the hangar area.  
_  
Well, that went exceptionally well_, Gino thought as they walked, _shot down without a word. Definitely a different feeling.  
_  
"There's an Honorary Britannian restaurant located just off base," she stated simply without looking back, "it serves Eleven cuisine, if that is enough of a deviation from the standard fare you expect..."

"That's fine."

She then stopped, causing him to almost collide with her.

"And for future reference, if you're going to make a pass on me, try and make an honest effort. It's rather embarrassing when the first pass in my freedom is worse than almost all the passes I had to endure in my servitude."

Gino flushed in embarrassment at being dressed down, this was actually a first for him. And if he was perfectly honest, it was rather intriguing considering its source.

"Touché. Seems that I'll have ample chances to improve it with you, since I'll be around Baron Kururugi, won't I?"

A small chirp sounded from her tablet, interrupting any response as she went back to it.

"However, the Baron has cleared it. So I'll join you, not as a date, mind you. But as someone who is famished. First, however, I recommend you freshen up."

"Yes, ma'am," he mock-saluted.

Yep, this vacation might be quite interesting, after all.

00000000000000000000000

"It's not a question of if the ghettos can be reconstructed," Baroness Elissa Fell stated, "it's more of a question of manpower and price."

"Elissa's right," Earl Denarius Closter agreed, "even if the ghettoes are more intact than normal, the infrastructure is more than likely a crapshoot. You're talking about battle damage and almost a decade of neglect and decay. The probability is you are looking at a full rebuild similar to what will take place in the Settlement."

Suzaku quietly nodded, his mind racing. He was actually grateful for the Earl and Baroness' for allowing him to call them back after dinner with the Colonel. The dinner itself had gone well to at least distract him from the more looming issue: reconstruction.

Honestly, there wasn't any way to stabilize his responsibility, unless he could actually create a stable atmosphere to live in. Which was why getting the reconstruction started was of paramount importance to him before he went to war.

That objective was the reason he was now talking to the foremost Area construction planners in the Empire on the Duke's recommendation. The fact that they had agreed to not only talk to him, but allow him to call them back was nothing short of miraculous luck, Yuki had noted to him that they were both hardliners who did not care for non-Britannians. He could only chalk it up to the Duke's connections, well, that and his status. Yuki again had quietly noted it was quite the faux pas to deny a Knight of the Round, especially a recipient of Eowyn's Star, an audience.

Still, that couldn't help that the meeting was going as badly as he feared it would. The discussion of the state of the ghettoes was the key issue, according to aerial surveys with ground-penetrating radar, it was discovered that many of the tunnels that had been the lifeblood of transit were compromised in several sectors, which meant that the work needed to be done was much more severe than even he had expected.

Still, he wouldn't be deterred, he promised the people of the Shinjuku Ghetto that he would rebuild it, and he damn well would get it done, regardless of the cost.

"If you could estimate how much it would cost to rebuild the ghettoes, how much would you two guess?"

Both seemed to nervously shift in the seats on his screen, which caused him to become equally nervous.

"Best guess... I'd say about four billion," her eyes flicked off-screen moment, as if something was requiring her attention, "a ghetto... minimum."

He blanched.

_Four BILLION?! That means sixteen billion pounds for all of it! Just where in the hell was he going to find that kind of money?_

"Thank you," he finally spoke, "is it possible that I can arrange to speak to you at a later time concerning this issue?"

"That's perfectly fine," the Baroness stated, "just contact my secretary and she'll arrange a video-conference."

"Unfortunately, I will be out of Pendragon for the time being. The Viceroy Hightower in Area 18 requested my presence, so I shall be otherwise indisposed, when I return I'll make sure to notify you."

"Thank you. I am grateful for the help you are giving me, I know how hard it is for you to even talk to me considering my origins."

They both nodded in return to his observation, before the link was cut, Suzaku relaxing with a sigh.

"Sixteen billion," he murmured, shaking his head as he glanced at the clock, noting it was almost nine p.m.

He reached into his uniform pocket and extracted his phone. Pulling it from its sleep mode, he accessed the messenger service on it.

"Where are you," he wrote Yuki.

_With Weinberg. Do not recommend meeting with him tonight._

His brow furrowed, walking out the door to the conference room.

**Why?**

_Second bottle of nihonshu. Lightweight._

He grimaced in response.

**I'm sorry.  
**  
_My fault._

**You know where the Duke is?**

_No. Check Miyazaki. I think he's down at the small-arms range._

**Thanks. Be careful with Weinberg.**

_Thanks, but unless he's going to kill me with cheesy pick-up lines, I don't think you need to worry._

Smiling in wry amusement, he closed his mobile.

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"3. 2. 1. Go, go, go."

Yoshi Miyazaki's hand turned the door knob, tossing in an object

"Flash," called the judge as Miyazaki immediately followed in while the judge counted down from five; he brought up his rifle, peering through the sight, swinging from the left as he acquired his first target.

Pulling the trigger twice in quick succession, the suppressor barking, striking the selected target as he was already moving, quickly acquiring a new target, pulling the trigger twice again, the metal stand-in for a hostage taker sounded with a ping as a pair of paint rounds hit its center-mass. He then picked off a third target with the same double-tap, clearing and moving further, he scanned his surroundings.

His gun snapped to the door as another target silhouette popped out in the doorway, but he held his fire - he recognized a hostage, before pulling the trigger twice as a new silhouette popped up behind the hostage, revealed as a hostage taker.

He moved past the target to the stairs, weapon still at the ready, acquiring a new target as it appeared at the top of the stairs and quickly taking it down with another double-tap.

Reaching the top of the stairs, he fired twice again, taking out another pop-up target, before conforming his body to the wall by the last door, he unclipped another "flashbang", nudged the door open a bit and tossed it in.

"Flash!"

The moment it was shouted, he was a blur of motion, flipping the select-fire switch from semi-automatic to burst-fire, he quickly acquired the nearest target, pulling the trigger once, before quickly going through the rest of the room, taking down five more targets.

Unholstering his pistol, he then quickly walked up to the target behind the desk, which already had three paint impact points in its midsection from a burst earlier. Placed on its face was a paper cut-out of Zero's mask.

Aiming with the pistol, he planted two more yellow pain splotches in the head without hesitation.

"Time."

Releasing the magazine from the pistol he holstered it and he walked to the stairs and slung the MCR up, and repeated the same release, placing the empty magazine in his hand as he exited the "compound", a mock-up building for hostage rescue exercises.

In front of him was a large gathering, various pilots and soldiers were gathered and waiting; he walked through them to the table, placing his rifle, handgun, and magazines down, where a judge inspected them.

"Perfect," came a call out from the top of the compound.

"Perfect," the ammo inspecting judge noted: he looked to the final judge, who was walking down the stairs over to a young brown-haired pensive-looking woman. Everyone was silent.

"Well Nicola, he got you. By 3.6 seconds."

There were murmurs from most of the crowd, a few were celebrating as they claimed the winnings from what seemed to be an impromptu bet.

Yoshi, meanwhile, walked over and offered a hand to the young woman, accompanied with a small smile.

The woman took it, still looking disappointed at her failure in winning.

"Nice try," he offered pleasantly.

"Thank you," she replied, giving a small smile, "I wish I had access to a rifle like that."

"It's not the gun itself, Lieutenant, it's the mentality. I don't know what they taught you in Basic, but think of the gun as an extension of yourself. The L9 has a significant advantage in CQC situations against my battle rifle configuration MCR, you just need to be more comfortable with it. If you would like, I can give you some lessons in our time off."

"I'd like that," she replied, adding a small smile of her own.

It was then that Yoshi's portion of the winnings were handed to him, which he looked at for a moment and handed to her.

"Here, I don't need this," he stated simply, "take everyone here out for drinks on me."

She looked confused as she took the money.

"Won't you join us?"

"Nah," he said, giving an assuring smile, "I came here for some shooting and I intend to do so, so you go on ahead."

"Thanks."

"No problem Lieutenant. Have fun," he patted her on the shoulder before going back, reclaiming his weapons and heading over to the cage to requisition ammo and grab his gun case.

The Lieutenant took one more look before going off and gathering the rest of the crowd, letting them know that they were going to get to hit the bar, resulting in hoots and hollers.

Walking to the cage, Yoshi stopped in front of the sergeant, pulling out his ID badge and sliding it through the cage slot.

"I need a hundred-eighty rounds of five-five-six, hundred-twenty of seven-six-two, and do you have any six-eights?"

The sergeant looked over the ID badge before handing it back to Yoshi apologetically.

"I apologize, Captain, but we don't have any six-eights. I can make a requisition order if you would like."

"No, that's fine," he shook his head, "I'm probably the only person on base with an MCR, so it's no problem. I'll make an order myself and save you guys the hassle."

"As you wish, sir," the Sergeant replied, walking back to the cage and coming back with requested ammunition in boxes and placed them before him, along with the gun case that Yoshi had come in with, "here you go sir."

"Thank you," Yoshi took the boxes and opened the case, placing them in it, before closing the case once again and turning around to find Suzaku standing there.

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Operator. That was a word that Suzaku had heard repeatedly during his time during Basic training, where there were a certain tier of people who existed in the world who had the capability that was of such a calibre. In a lot of ways, they were considered almost mythical.

There was almost no doubt in his mind that Yoshi Miyazaki was one of those so-called Operators, just the way he had handled the obstacle course, even though Suzaku had transferred over to Knightmare Frame operations, he still remembered the training he had undertaken, and he safely could say he could not match the cold steel-like efficiency that Miyazaki had shown. Even the emotionless "execution" of Zero, which took an entire world's worth of effort not for him to react outwardly to it, was a characteristic of someone who was honed to the razor's edge of capability.

He could almost understand why Yoshi had been so angry with him, it wasn't just the fact that he had done everything to undermine Yoshi. No, it was the very fact that he hadn't allowed Yoshi to do what he did best, was what drove him to such a state, he hadn't trusted him. If he didn't have a reason for his actions, there was no doubt in his mind that he would be before Yoshi apologizing profusely. But that wasn't going to happen anytime soon, he was right, but Yoshi was also right.

Still, just because they were both right didn't mean that he shouldn't at least try and mend fences with him. Which was part of the reason he was here.

He could almost feel the room cool with the warm expression on Yoshi's face disappearing into a neutral and almost icy demeanor, he merely nodded in acknowledgement.

"Baron," he acknowledged, hefting the gun case, before slipping past the Baron and heading down the hallway.

"Captain," Suzaku called out after him, causing Yoshi to stop.

"Yes, Baron?" The bodyguard responded, turning around.

"Do you know where the Duke is?"

Yoshi stared at him for a moment, his brown eyes seeming to attempt to discern the purpose of the question.

"I haven't seen him since lunch," he finally responded, "he said he had some things to see to, so if he's disappeared, it's probably for good reason. He's a hands-on type of guy."

_There's something else there_, Suzaku thought, _something he doesn't want to tell me. Is it the same thing that the Duke has refused to talk about?  
_  
"What is it you aren't telling me," he pushed, deciding to test the waters of his limits, he could not afford to have any secrets that could blindside him at any moment, even if it was possibly humiliating.

Yoshi was surprised by his choice, judging by his expression. Obviously, he had expected him to simply allow it to pass.

But, as quickly as it was there, it was gone.

He walked past Suzaku, Suzaku's mouth opening in protest as Yoshi stopped at the cage.

"Sergeant give me another set of the same."

"Yes sir," the sergeant dutifully replied, retrieving the requested ammunition and placing them before him.

"Also, close down the range for the Baron and myself."

"As you wish, sir."

Turning back to Suzaku he walked past him again with the magazines added to his bag.

"With me, My Lord,"

He could only nod flatly, wondering what was going on through his head.

They both went through the door and into a large gunnery range, complete with lanes and paper targets.

Yoshi stopped and keyed the comm behind them.

"Sergeant, lock it up, I'll call you when we are done."

An audible click resounded through the empty gun range, almost mocking Suzaku's isolation with this man.

"What do you know of the Northern campaign, My Lord?" Yoshi asked.

Northern campaign, Suzaku thought, a little off-put by the question.

"I know it saw some of the most intense fighting during the Second Pacific War, Britannia decided to focus on the Kanto region and a lot of the Japanese Army retreated to Hokkaido and dug in, by the time they refocused towards the north, it was a bastion. It took almost three months to pacify it. A lot of the blame fell to the ground commanders for the losses."

During Suzaku's exposition, Yoshi had walked over to the closest shooting lane, placing down his case on the table and opening it, as soon as Suzaku finished he grunted in acknowledgement and he retrieved his MCR out of the case, a different one from the one he had used just awhile ago. He then went to work attaching a suppressor on the end.

Suzaku had likewise followed him and was shocked as Yoshi held it out to him

"No, I-"

"You're rated as an L9A2 marksman," Yoshi stated flatly, "take the gun. I need someone to test the accuracy of the gun. It needs adjustments."

Suzaku numbly took the gun, noting how it seemed a bit heavier than what he remembered of the L9.

He quickly caught a tossed magazine while Yoshi placed down five more in front of him on the surface.

"Fire select is-"

Suzaku had already brought it up and switched it from safe to semi-auto, reaching to the sight he flipped up the sight before powering it on, stopping as he noticed the light-blue smiley face on it.

"Okay then," Yoshi stated with a hint of grudging respect.

Suzaku then aimed down towards the paper target, noting that it was indeed heavier, but a lot more solid than the toy-like L9 he had used before he had gotten the Lancelot.

"Weapons hot," he called, aiming down his sight, towards the target.

He then pulled the trigger, feeling the recoil of the rifle, which, while surprisingly sharp, was not too harsh. Pulling the trigger again, he felt his way around the rifle, noting the way it climbed, how it recoiled, even that imperceptible shift in the overall weapon. Yet for a 'heavy' rifle, it was surprisingly stable with almost all of the recoil being distributed in a fashion to where it didn't jump.

Yet with the suppressor it was almost a whisper, completely different from the pop that any suppressor he had used or seen in action.

He looked over at Yoshi, who was watching him.

_Well, that's semi-auto_, Suzaku though, _let's go all out._

Flipping the selector to auto, he held down the trigger, letting out a long burst, feeling each round fire, yet the gun didn't jerk around at all, almost every single round hitting right in the center, letting off the trigger. He then pulled it again, firing until he had exhausted the magazine.

He blinked, looking up as he safed the weapon.

Yoshi reached over and activated the conveyor, pulling the paper target to them.

Almost every single round, other than three of them were almost center mass.

"Not bad, though going full out really isn't the strong suit of the weapon," Yoshi mused, "what do you think of it?"

Suzaku looked it over again.

"I think it's one of the best guns I've ever handled. Who makes it?"

"Vrey Tactical Arms," Yoshi replied, smiling, "out of Hamden. Before Special Ops bought it up it was the VTA Ascendence and if you want to buy it, it's about ten thousand pounds."

Suzaku blanched, ten THOUSAND a rifle, he looked at it again, that was insane. The L9 was at best eight hundred pounds.

"But it's just a high-performance rifle," Suzaku muttered.

"It's more than a rifle, My Lord, it's a jack-of-all-trades gun. It's so modular you can change its chamber or even role in less than a few minutes. It can be CQC, sniper, or battle rifle in less than ten minutes as long as you have the modular components. It's worth every damn schilling and then some. The one you just fired I used in Area 18 during the Force Recon."

Suzaku nodded slightly, dampening his surprise at the revelation, because it had just occurred to him what Yoshi had been doing. He had been distracting him from his question.

"What about the Northern campaign," he asked staring levelly at Yoshi, intent on getting the truth.

Yoshi's expression turned almost immediately, the enjoyment on his face gone.

"Right," he said, as if giving up, "Northern campaign."

Walking over to the table, he opened up one of the boxes, reaching for an empty magazine and a speed loader, he began loading it.

"I didn't take part in the Second Pacific War," he admitted, "didn't sit kindly with a lot of people the prospect of a half-breed getting sentimental for his homeland, even if he had never seen it before in his life," snorting at that, he placed down the full magazine, before starting another, "but Al? Al was there, the entire damn campaign."

_That would have made him what_, Suzaku thought_, twenty-one?_

"He was dropped behind enemy lines on the first day with the rest of his unit, they didn't even have a designation, they were just called the Eighth Britannian Lancers. Japanese quickly had another name for them, Ogama."

"Scythes," Suzaku translated, immediately recognizing the term.

"They were that good. Even painted a scythe on all of their units. Anyways, up until the Northern Campaign, they hadn't lost a single man, a few damaged Glasgows here and there, but nothing that couldn't be fixed."

He tossed the full magazine down, seemingly irritated by something.

"The Northern Campaign was a damned fool's errand to begin with. It shouldn't have happened, but the nobles overrode General Steele and insisted that if we focused on and took the Kanto region and Kururugi's head, the Japanese would simply surrender. Dumb bastards never met Toshiro Tanaka. Of course, most of the Japanese surrendered when Kururugi died, but not Tanaka, no, he decided to gather up anyone who wanted to die a glorious death and fell back to the north and fought to the last man, damn the consequences."

"So where does the Duke come in?"

Yoshi scratched the back of his neck, looking up at the wall, but it seemed more off in the distance, as if he was recalling the events, even though he had never experienced it.

"His unit was one of the vanguards for the taking of the North, which meant they were tossed out on a limb and told to blindly stick their collective dicks in a hole and hope they didn't get it bitten off when they found the crazy. Weather was absolute shit up in the north and so everything was done through contacts and reporting."

Weather was always a problem up in the north, Suzaku quietly agreed, he hadn't spent a lot of the time up north in Hokkaido, but he knew the weather could get unpredictable and downright horrible in the fastest of moments.

"Anyways," he continued, "sure enough, about two weeks in, after a lot of smaller contacts and battles, they got hammered. Lost four members in less than an hour and Al found himself in command of an understrength unit."

"But the Duke would have only been what, twenty? Twenty-one? How would he be in command," Suzaku asked.

"'Cause Al was the Executive Officer of it," Yoshi said quietly, "but that's not the worse part of it, the worst part of it was that he was involved with his CO, I didn't even know about it 'till after the fact, but… the Japanese didn't exactly take kindly to catching a Scythe… especially a female one."

He took a deep breath, shaking himself even as Suzaku could immediately see what he was saying, and he felt a little sick. He was perfectly aware of the depravity of war, and he honestly wished he could believe in his former countrymen and that they would be honorable, but he knew perfectly well what could happen when you were pushed into a corner and completely helpless, and you find one of your attackers at your mercy.

He shuddered at the thought, knowing perfectly well where this was going.

"The Duke did the only thing he could, he didn't even know if she was still alive, but he pulled back, regrouped, and gathered reinforcements, but it took days… days in which she was tortured and," even Yoshi couldn't finish it, "when they found her well… I never could get an answer from Al, but I have a feeling, no, I am almost assured that when he found her, he didn't let her suffer any further. After that, well, I don't want to go any further into it, that's more his story, and maybe he'll tell you one day, but for now, it's not my right, and don't you go pestering anyone else for the rest of it."

"You still haven't explained why the Duke is not here, all you've given me is a history lesson."

Yoshi sighed, tossing a magazine to Suzaku, who caught it, catching the intent of the unsaid message, walked back to the MCR and slid in a new magazine, pulling back the charging handle as he chambered a round, a new target already up for him when he aimed downrange, switching to burst-fire and fired a pair of bursts, noting again the accuracy.

"The anniversary of his CO's death is tomorrow," Yoshi finally stated, "and believe me when I say this, you don't want him around."

Yeah, he could understand it, he finally concluded as he noted that four more magazines had appeared beside him as he had exhausted the magazine he already had and released it, swapping it out and chambering a fresh round.

Euphemia was still an incredibly touchy subject with him, but not for the reasons everyone presume. It was an open sore of failure and betrayal. He had failed Euphie because he had trusted Lelouch. He had the opportunity to stop it, he could have.

He shook his head, mechanically replacing magazines, stopping as he heard another gun firing, looking over to where Yoshi was now shooting downrange.

He didn't need to dwell upon it, he had failed Euphie, the only way he could possibly make it up was fulfilling her wish, unfortunately by sword.

Yet, for every round he seemed to fire as he thought, the more clarity he seemed to attain, the stress seeming to slough off him. It seemed almost therapeutic, that each shot was a nail sealing his grief and shame in a room to save him from being haunted, at least for now.

"You seem to know a lot about the Duke for your commanding officer."

Yoshi stopped after expending his own magazine.

"Probably because the Duke and I grew up together," he finally replied, taking out a pen and paper, jotting something on.

Now that was surprising, Suzaku thought. As far as he knew, Yoshi was a Britannian citizen, but he was a first-gen, first-gens in the social hierarchy were not much higher than Honorary Britannians, they had more opportunity of course, but it was just a general rule that they were viewed with suspicion due to their parentage.

So it was somewhat of a surprise that Miyazaki would admit to something like this, but that the Duke would be involved with a first-gen in any way was borderline scandalous.

"Our fathers knew each other," Yoshi filled in the blanks, obviously picking up the line of thought going through Suzaku's mind, "were close friends actually, so it was only natural that we grew up together, we were pretty much brothers in how we were raised."

He suddenly flashed a smile, as if remembering something, before shaking his head.

"Al was the one who talked me into joining the military, said I could do so much more if I tagged along with him. Course, there was the Sir Bubbles incident," he shook his head, before looking at Suzaku, "you and the Duke have a lot in common, you're both bullheaded pains in my ass."

This brought a small blush of embarrassment and a murmured, "Sorry," from Suzaku.

"But, you both have your ideals. Though, it would be nice if you would actually hold yourself to it instead of letting Al dictate for you. Brilliant he may be, he's still an arrogant asshole at times and if he thinks he can control you, well, by the time you figure out what he's going to do, he's already on to his next scheme."

"And what would you have me do," Suzaku asked defensively, "if the Duke is this genius you claim he is and the Princess thinks he is, what can I do?"

Yoshi had picked up the rifle again, inserting the magazine and chambering a round. Aiming down the sight, he squeezed off several rounds before stopping, as if thinking, before finally responding.

"What do you have at the moment? You have a Barony that needs to be rebuilt, but you probably don't have the money to do so. You are the Baron of said Barony, so while you can't pay for it, what can you do?"

Suzaku stopped, losing himself in thought as to what Yoshi could be referring to.

Was he attacking the problem incorrectly? He had spent almost the entire day talking about rebuilding the ghettoes. But that was what was needed to improve the situation. So how could he be wrong? There wasn't anything that was small that could make changes to the status quo.

"What are you talking about? I don't understand? How can the little things solve a sixteen billion pounds sterling problem?"

Yoshi shook his head with a sigh.

"Forget completely about the money, Suzaku. The money will come in, don't know how Al will do it, but he'll get it done with the Princess's help, he hasn't let her down yet."

Yet Suzaku had nothing and it was readily apparent to Yoshi as he placed down the rifle.

"Okay, forget the entire nobility thing, Suzaku, that is nothing more than trappings that will distract you from what you really are."

"And what would that be?"

"You're a CEO," he stated, "the Barony is your business. At least that's how Al always views his duchy, he's merely the head executive and the face of it, the real power is the people, my father included, who act as his board of directors. Honestly, that's how you should do it, find people with your vision, who believe in the dream, and can execute it competently even in your absence, because you will be absent because you are a soldier first."

He picked up the rifle and headed back to the desk, Suzaku finding he no longer had anymore stomach to shoot, in spite of what it did.

"So what do you suggest I do?"

Yoshi detached the upper receiver of the MCR and proceeded to attach a new upper receiver to the rifle, checking it over as he secured it.

"Stick to your ideals," Yoshi said, "there is nothing more that incenses a populace like fake people. You were talking to Colonel Anderson about the slavers during dinner, right?"

"Yeah, but I haven't made a decision."

"Then make one. These men were kidnapping one of the people you are sworn to protect, it's as cut and dry as one can get. I don't know why you are even debating it. Stop acting like a politician, you're not cut from the same cloth as your father. Swift, decisive action is our creed, take action. De l'audace, encore de l'audace, et toujours de l'audace."

"And that means?"

Yoshi flashed a smile, "Something Al always mutters when he thinks no one's looking. Think of it as a pop quiz, since you're going to have to learn the language soon enough. But enough of that, I think you have some things to do before bedtime."

Suzaku nodded, "Yoshi, thank you."

"I don't see why you should be thanking me," Yoshi replied nonchalantly while examining a magazine with a careful eye, "not like I saved your life or anything."

Suzaku's expression fell slightly at the barb.

"I'm sorry about that, if I knew..."

"Bullshit," Yoshi snorted, "you'd do it again in a heartbeat. So don't go apologizing for what is your nature, and I won't apologize for clocking your ass for said nature."

Suzaku stared at him, a little taken aback at the blunt statement. Then for some reason he could only laugh at the sincerity of it.

"I can live with that," he said, extending his hand to Yoshi.

Yoshi looked at the hand for a moment, before reaching out and shaking it.

"Just don't blame me if you end up with a few screws loose at the end of this. But hey, if it worked out for the Duke…"

They both laughed.

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Yoshi watched as Suzaku left the shooting range, the door shutting behind the Knight of Eleven. As soon as that was achieved, Yoshi relaxed, picking up the rifle and sliding in the magazine.

_Well, Al's going to pissed_, he thought as he fired off a series of seven-six-two, the staccato serving in his mind as damnation in its own way.

Going through the thirty rounds, he pulled in the paper target, running it over with a critical eye at where the spread was.  
_  
But seriously Al, he's 17, I can understand you using Cornelia, but have you fallen so low that you would use a kid for your goals?  
_  
Memorizing where the rounds hit, he put up a new paper target, intent to take his anxiety out on the target. It wasn't something he wanted to share with the Baron, but around this time he was half-worried he would find out his best friend would do something stupid.

As soon as that was achieved, Yoshi relaxed, picking up the rifle and sliding in the magazine.

_What the hell was he thinking? Of course he would_, Yoshi thought with a shake of his head, especially now.

He didn't know exactly what Al was doing at the moment, but he knew that the anniversary was utter hell for his best friend. Everything Al presented himself as always went out the window, instead replaced with a bitter and resentful man who seemed to hate the world for everything, and hated himself even further.

No, he did not want to be around him right now, he thought with a frown as he got back to work with adjusting his rifles.

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"Sergeant, I would like to see the prisoner."

"Of course, Baron," the sergeant replied leading him to the door that would lead into the brig.

"Privately, sergeant. Do you have a room where I can talk to him?"

"Of course, Baron. There's a room down over there," he motioned behind Suzaku, "I'll bring the prisoner, but per regulations, he will still be restrained."

"That's acceptable," Suzaku replied, turning towards the room in question as the sergeant fulfilled his command.

Opening the door into the room, he noted the table and two chairs, but did not take a chair as he settled himself with a deep calming breath.

Truth be told, he didn't know why he was even down here, it would have been a lot easier to simply make the proclamation and be done with it. The man was guilty as sin, it was unequivocal. Everything should now be in the hands of the Colonel and the military and he shouldn't be here, even thinking about talking with the criminal.

He was snapped out of his thoughts as the door opened, the sergeant coming in with the prisoner and allowing him to get a look at the man in question.

The man appeared to be in his mid to late twenties, his sandy blonde hair had been tied into a ponytail which fell on the right side of his head, his blue eyes were scanning the room quickly, meeting Suzaku for a moment as he was guided to his chair and dropped unceremoniously into it.

"Get your hands off my, you worm," he spoke contemptuously in a haughty tone, obviously one used to giving commands, Suzaku quietly noted, "you're nothing more than a flea-bitten mongrel leeching off the good graces of our kind."

"Sergeant," Suzaku stated quietly, noting the sergeant was restraining himself from lashing out, "thank you, take station outside the room, if you will."

"Of course, sir," the sergeant replied, a hint of gratitude in his tone as he snapped a salute, before taking his leave.

"That's right, dog, run back into your kennel," the Britannian mocked with a smile as the door shut.

Suzaku chose to say nothing as the Britannian refocused upon him.

"It's about time someone of authority has shown up, I was beginning to wonder if any of you animals had a sense of decorum."

It took a lot of effort for Suzaku to not respond to the bait, because it was obvious that was what the man was trying to do. No doubt if anyone had responded physically it would have fulfilled the man's intent to have a reason to destroy more lives. It was a credit to the Colonel's men that there hadn't been an occurrence.

"Mister Kolchak, do you know who I am," Suzaku asked levelly.

"Is there any reason why I should," the man replied, smug expression plastered on his face, "all of you monkeys look the same, though, I will have to admit, you're probably the best dressed one I have seen in awhile. But a monkey is still a monkey."

_Keep it cool Suzaku_, he thought to himself, _don't make any rash decisions...yet._

"I'm Baron Suzaku Kururugi, Knight of Eleven."

The man burst out laughing.

"An Eleven, a Knight of the Round and a Baron on top of that? That's amusing, where's the hidden camera," he looked around, "please, tell me more, I like a good comedian."

Grinding his teeth, he came forward and sat in the chair, he could tell the man was enjoying getting under his skin, which he was succeeding.

"I am the Baron of this area," he stated, searching for that serene mind that Tohdoh had taught him as he stared levelly at the man, "and you are a criminal."

The amusement flickered and died on his face as the realization sunk in.

"My God, you're serious, I thought Yushiro was kidding about you," Kolchak responded, shaking his head, "what is the Empire coming to."

With Suzaku remaining silent, the man's entire body language changed as he sat back, his handcuffs rattling.

"Where's my lawyer," he demanded, "I demand to see my lawyer."

"You'll be able to see your lawyer," Suzaku stated a little too coldly, "as soon as I decide upon the court you will be charged in."

The man laughed.

"Court? The ghettoes have no court. And it'll be a cold day in hell before you have one in place, Elevens are nothing more than uncivilized cattle, you just happen to be an exception."

"Article 28, Section 12, Subsection C, Clause 4, in the event of no established capable administrative apparatus in conquered area, local administrative duties can be fulfilled by the ranking officer until establishment of an administrative system capable of fulfilling duties established in Article 6 Sections 1 through 18."

"And?"

"Under the Knights of the Round Restoration Act of 1867 a.t.b., all members of the Knights of the Round are assigned a nominal operational brevet rank of General, only superseded by either a military officer of flag rank or nobility with rank equal to or exceeding Duke."

Taking a deep breath, he could almost taste how the room atmosphere had become frosty.

"That would make me the ranking officer of the Tokyo Settlement, pretty good for a monkey, don't you think?"

"You really think your little kangaroo court is going to put me away, you and your Honorary Britannian dogs and commoner filth. My uncle is a Margrave, there is no way your little power trip is going last."

"Need I remind you in that same act all decisions made by a Knight of the Round is only answerable to the Knight of One, the Prime Minister, and the Emperor. Unless your uncle has the ear of any of those three, the chances of my decision being overturned are slim," by God, he actually was enjoying this, watching this racist's emotions run wild as he recognized the situation he was in, this was completely unlike him, but, if he was really going to admit it, this was delectable as payback. He had suffered years of this treatment, and this was the first time he could actually lash back without fear of retaliation.

"However, I will abstain from taking presiding over your trial," Suzaku continued, keeping his voice as even as possible, "you will be tried by commanders of the units you so derisively have called dogs and whatever else you have deigned to call them. So, Derek Kolchak, you and your cohorts have been charged with kidnapping, resisting arrest, kidnapping in the pursuit of slave trade, along with several other charges."

Kolchak's eye twitched, but he kept silent, obviously trying to figure out what he had for options.

"In a military court, you won't have the luxury of media or even a jury," Suzaku continued, "I of course would know this due to my… experiences. But unlike that court, I will make sure that you are given every luxury that I wasn't, but I will be blunt, the evidence against you is near insurmountable."

"It's not like Elevens are trustworthy witnesses, they are uncivilized-"

"You will shut your mouth, Mister Kolchak," Suzaku snapped, finally fed up with the man's racist rants, "those Elevens, as you are referring to them, are my subjects, while they may not be Britannian citizens YET, they are human beings. As you are so loathe to note, I was an Eleven before I swore an oath to the Empire."

Standing up he walked over towards the door, the man who had come in so haughty had shriveled up, as if looking at Suzaku as if he was the very epitome of doom for him.

"Those Eleven witnesses are only adding to the physical evidence and eyewitness testimony of the military soldiers who arrested you in commission of the crimes you are accused of. You will be tried in a military tribunal under military law. I suggest you prepare for the inevitable, because I will fight to make sure you serve the maximum sentence for your crimes. If you had shown a hint of remorse, I would have been more lenient. Good evening, Mister Kolchak."

He then opened the door and stepped out to the cries of the man who asked for his attention, closing it behind him.

"The man is yours Sergeant."

"Of course, My Lord. Permission to speak freely, sir?"

Suzaku perked up, focusing on the sergeant who had a small smile on his face.

"Of course, Sergeant."

"I couldn't help but overhear what you said to Mister Kolchak, and I think I can speak for the rest of the unit when they get the word, but I'm glad you are in charge here, sir."

Suzaku nodded in acknowledgement, unable to find any words to express to the gratitude in the sergeant's tone.

"Well then, My Lord, I best get to the prisoner, I think it will be quite the enjoyable night for me."

Opening the door, the sergeant stepped through as Suzaku stepped away, accessing the mobile in his pocket as he flipped it open, dialing Colonel Anderson.

Heading out the door to the brig, it connected to the Colonel.

"Colonel? It's Baron Kururugi, I've made my decision…"

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For what seemed like the hundredth time that day, Milly Ashford found herself staring at the picture that the Duke of New Haven had given her yesterday.

If it wasn't in her hands where she could feel it, she wouldn't have believed that her grandfather was anything more than the kind old man who wanted to change the world one person at a time. Now, she wasn't so sure.

She had ignored some things over the years, partially because she was too young. But with this new piece, things were clicking into place.

She had always wondered why her grandfather had seemed to go above and beyond for Lelouch and Nunnally, if it had been discovered that he had been hiding them it would have been disastrous. This wasn't to say that she didn't care for Lelouch and Nunnally, but she would be stupid not to know about the consequences.

So was her grandfather a member of this Gestalt? What even was the Gestalt? What was their goal if her grandfather was involved in it? And who the hell was this man with her grandfather and Empress Marianne?!

"Milly," Rivalz popped his head into the room, causing her to quickly put away the picture as she settled in.

"Rivalz, what's going on?"

"Can I talk to you?"

"Sure," she forced a smile on her face as she beckoned him inside, the smile faltering a little bit before snapping back as he came in with a bottle of champagne and two glasses.

"Rivalz, what are you doing," she found herself asking as he placed down the bottle and glasses on the desk.

"Champagne loses its best taste after a year," he replied with a smile and a shrug, "and this so happens to be on the cusp of it."

She still didn't see the purpose of it, champagne was meant for celebration, what was there to celebrate? Everyone was gone, Lelouch was dead...

Of course, she thought as she glanced over Rivalz, now noting the shadows in his eyes, Lelouch was a really close friend to him, if someone would be feeling as bad as her, it would be Rivalz. Yet here he was trying do his best in his own clumsy way to make her feel better.

"Okay," she said, "but let's not have a repeat of what happened to Kallen."

Laughing sheepishly, Rivalz proceeded to uncork the bottle, a loud pop echoing in the office as Rivalz allowed it to fizz a bit, before pouring into the glasses. He then handed it to Milly.

"So, what shall we toast," she asked.

"I dunno," Rivalz said, "to be perfectly honest, I thought you'd chase me out."

She could only laugh, which caused Rivalz to relax and smile wider.

"How about to absent friends?"

"To absent friends," Rivalz agreed, they both then sipping the champagne.

"You know, Shirley emailed me this morning," Milly stated, placing down the empty glass, "she's settling in Seattle. She says it's a beautiful city."

"Seattle, that's great," Rivalz exclaimed, refilling her glass, "good for her."

"Yeah."

Left unsaid between them, was the status of Nunnally, Nina, and Kallen. It just really wasn't necessary to discuss. They both knew.

"You've been really distracted the last two days Milly," Rivalz finally broke the uneasy silence, "I know with everything that went on, but it just seemed worse after that nobleman showed up."

She wanted to deny it, but really, what would that gain her. Rivalz was the last of the Student Council, and they had all been together for three years now, there was no doubt he would note any change in her behavior.

But how much should she say? That her grandfather may or may have been part of some possible conspiracy as part of some group that is a reference to some European Union psychologist's theory. Yeah, he might just laugh at her. So what should she say?

"Can you keep a secret?" she asked.

"Of course, Milly. I can keep any secret," he said cheerfully.

Already she was beginning to regret opening her mouth, as she remembered that smile, right before she dismantled him and found out what Lelouch was doing behind her back. Maybe this was a case of karmic revenge for all the things she had done to him.

Damage already done, she retrieved the picture and showed it to Rivalz.

"The Duke of New Haven gave this to me," she said, "my grandfather and the Empress Marianne are in it, but I don't recognize the other man."

Rivalz furrowed his brow, as if he was trying to remember something.

"Can I see it?"

Milly hesitated for a moment, before handing it to Rivalz.

"Hmmm," he murmured, staring more closely at it, before looking up, "you said that the Duke of New Haven gave this to you?"

"Yes."

"And he has white hair?"

"As snow."

"Welp, then it's quite obvious," he declared, "the Dukes of New Haven have a really queer rite of passage tradition where they dye their hair white. That looks like Augustus Knight, the previous Duke of New Haven, I think he's dead now."

Milly blinked at Rivalz, completely surprised by this. Rivalz had always been a bit of an airhead, so this was unexpected of him to actually be truly helpful in a serious way.

He seemed to pick up on it as he laughed nervously, "My mom has a thing for fashion, she never shuts up about it when she gets a chance, always telling me I should be more like this noble or that noble."

She could actually see that, she thought as she looked over the picture, attaching a name to the previously mysterious man. It was a step in the right direction and allowed her to actually now take a look at other details in regards to her grandfather, she really couldn't see that he would do it, but this was a picture of her grandfather, the Empress Marianne, and the Duke's father… Well, it was more than likely there was some kind of truth to the narrative.

"Milly," Rivalz broke her out of her reverie, as she looked to his concerned expression, "what's bothering you? Is there anything I can do to help? I mean, I know I'm not Lelouch or anything, but I can help, anything for you? You're not alone."

Milly could only smile at the honesty of her friend, as she shook her head.

"It's okay, Rivalz, I really don't know how you can help, but as soon as I do, I'll let you know, okay?"

"Okay."

"Well," she finally said after taking a deep breath and giving a cat-like grin, "that champagne is not going to finish itself, is it?"

"Of course not," he replied, seriousness gone, replaced by the cheerfulness that defined who Rivalz Cardemonde was.

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Humming along cheerfully to herself, Cecile Croomy was having an excellent morning. It wasn't just the fact she had a new breakthrough in her wing system, but now she was going to get to do what she enjoyed doing, tinkering with brand-new straight-off-the-line Knightmares.

According to the guard that had greeted her when she had arrived on base, four new Knightmares had been delivered to the hangar that Lloyd and Victoria had taken over for every single project they could do.

It was strange, she thought, how easily Harrington had been readily accepted by Lloyd, considering how protective he was of his projects. He was not exactly what you would say is a social animal, in fact, he was the very epitome of an oddball, she was honestly his only friend through the Imperial Colchester Institute. It had taken weeks for her to get used to the Earl, and that was through the threat of physical violence.

So, in the same manner she had done with Suzaku, she had spent the morning preparing a small celebration meal for the Baroness's unofficial welcoming into the group. She had prepared onigiri with umekuze, wasabi, and peanut butter to serve the older woman.

Finally reaching the door, she slid her access card through and the door opened as she took a deep breath before refreshing the smile on her face.

Yet it disappeared almost immediately as she spotted the Lancelot.

"WHAT THE HELL?!"

The Lancelot, for lack of a better term, looked like it had been exploded throughout a quarter of the hangar, with pieces everywhere, the only thing recognizable was the head sitting on the ground.

"Ahhh, Cecile, good morning," Lloyd called out from somewhere in the mess.

Walking gingerly, trying to avoid all the strewn about wires and pieces until she came upon the two who were currently looking over a piece of the leg assembly. They were both out of their usual attire, with Victoria in a decidedly unprofessional tank top and loose pants, while Lloyd had gotten rid of his coat.

"Why is the Lancelot in pieces," she demanded, a hint of anger in her tone, "I thought we were finished with the Conquista?"

"Uhhh," Lloyd rubbed the back of his neck, like a child caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

"That would be my fault," Victoria spoke up, "I called Lloyd in the middle of the night because I was going over the specs of the Lancelot, it ended up a couple of questions turned into well… this.

"And what is this," she asked, curiosity replacing irritation as she looked it over.

"It's a streamlining of the Lancelot's design," Lloyd intervened excitedly, "Vic here figured out a way to increase the Lancelot's performance by eight percent by replacing the armor we placed on with the same armor matrix she had designed for the Duke's Knightmare."

"Then there is the unnecessary systems and wiring," she added, "the Lancelot is a great design as a testbed of technologies, but it looks like you're at the limit of how far you can go with the basic frame."

"It's more like Suzaku has pressed the limits," Cecile noted, recognizing the logic in it, "even with the Conquista upgrade, it's probably likely Suzaku's capabilities as a devicer will surpass even this upgrade."

"I wouldn't know," Victoria responded, "but I know the feeling. The Duke is a nightmare, no pun intended, for Knightmare design, I hand-designed his entire Knightmare and upgraded it, and even now he's reached its limit. You saw how he was fighting, the frame, excluding the damage, is already maxed out on frame life, from just that one battle."

"And you think the Vincent is going to be any better?"

Vic shook her head, a smile gracing her face, "Maybe a bit better since it's based on the Lancelot, but Al demands so much out of the Knightmare I don't know what his limit is, so I'll do my best. Besides, it's nice having the Duke in my debt."

"But we get to improve the Lancelot," Lloyd singed excitely, "I wonder what Suzaku would think."

"I think he'd be grateful," Cecile responded, "speaking of which, Baroness-"

"Victoria, or Vic," she corrected."

"Victoria, I would like to share this with you, since we're now all a team," she then presented the tin.

"Oh my, I have to go and sign off on a shipment," Lloyd stated in a bit nervously, eyes flitting around, "I'll be back in a bit."

Before either of them could react, he quickly scurried away, leaving the two of them.

"I wonder what's up with him," Cecile mused, before opening up the tin.

"Oh, onigiri, I love those," Vic then grabbed one of the rice balls and proceeded to take a bite of it.

"This is kinda good," Vic noted, taking another bite of it, "what's all in it?"

Cecile blushed at the compliment, as Vic polished off and reached for another one.

"Well, I put peanut butter, umekuze, and wasabi."

The onigiri dropped out of her hand as she paled.

"You said wasabi," she rasped, "I'm allergic to wasabi."

"Oh," Cecile murmured, as it dawned on her, "OH!"

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"Oh Motoko," Lee chuckled, leafing through the manga he was reading, which had a couple of scantily clad girls on it, "you know you so want Arthur's dick."

Laughing again, he reached over to a small box and extracted a piece of pocky, munching on it as he leaned further back in the expensive chair, his feet propped up on the arm of another piece of expensive furniture that he had rearranged.

With the Villa the Duke had bought for their usage completely empty, he had decided to move to greener pastures, in this case, haunting the Knights of the Round villa seemed quite right, at least in his mind. Plenty of activity, could annoy Knights of the Round with his commoner ass just as much as he annoyed Al, and they really couldn't do anything about it. Everything was perfect.

"Pervert."

Looking over his book, he spotted top of a pink head.

Reaching over and grabbing an unopened box of pocky and tossed it towards the pinkette.

"Here kid, have some chocolate. Go and do whatever you gremlins do."

Going back to the manga he paused.

_Wait... pink hair... short... oh... crap..._

Snapping down the manga, his fears were justified as he recognized Anya Alstreim, Knight of Six, standing there with camera in one hand, pocky box in other, piece of pocky hanging out of her mouth as she took a picture.

"Well, umm... this is awkward," he said nervously, taking his feet down and shutting the manga, "my apologies, Lady Alstreim, I mistook you for someone else."

Finishing off the pocky in her mouth staring at him with her blank emotionless eyes, she walked towards him, and reached past Lee.

Mentally flinching in preparation, he was relieved as she stepped away. However the relief was replaced by horror as he realized that she had taken away his OTHER box of pocky.

"This will do for an apology," Anya replied, walking away with two instances of Lee's most prized possession.

"But... uh... my... eh...," he sighed in defeat, completely depressed now, "how can I enjoy Love Saku without pocky?"

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"You're a louse, Lelouch Lamperouge," C.C.'s voice filled his head as he was reading over something.

Sighing, he leaned back in his chair as he folded his hands.

"And the witch returns. Tell me, C.C., how am I a louse, as you put it?"

"Why do you think?"

"I honestly have no idea, and I'm not in the mood for your games right now? I have too much to get done a few hours to do so. So, please, get to the point witch, before I ignore you."

"It's not like you can," she chided.

"C.C., would you please get to your point?" he asked, wishing he could...

"Really, Lelouch, what did I just tell you?" she responded, seemingly reading his mind, in fact, he was now becoming certain her claim wasn't a lie.

She then audibly sighed in his mind as he grinded his teeth.

"Fine. Even though you now have all the time in the world, you can't seem to make time for the one woman who gave you that opportunity. Have you thought about what you did to Kallen?"

"What is there to think about?" he responded, "if anything, Kallen should be proud of her success."

"You really don't get women, do you? Here you are, complimenting her when the thing you are complimenting her on, you had to slip her a date rape drug to get her to do it."

"But it's the results that matter," he replied dismissively, waving his head, "in the end, no one was hurt and we are all now better off. I don't see what is wrong with any of this."

A long silence descended upon the duo and for a bit Lelouch thought that C.C. had gone back to whatever it was that she did when she was harassing him…

"You know you claim she is your accomplice, like I was, yet you use her as a pawn," C.C. finally, quietly, said, causing Lelouch to stiffen, "why is that?"

"I don't know what you're talking about. I have treated Kallen like I always…" he stopped, a part of him calling him a liar as he thought about, he had treated Kallen like an accomplice… hadn't he?

Of course, it had been only a few days since they had made their contract but-

"Accomplices have a balance," C.C. interrupted his thoughts again, adding additional damnation to the new realization, "you haven't had a balance with her Lelouch, all you have done is move her around and command her just like before."

His skin crawled as he felt suddenly colder, as if C.C.'s very ghostly presence was wrapping their arms around him, his mind racing as he shifted to the new issue he could see developing, not now. Nothing to do with India, the Chinese Federation, or Britannia, but with Kallen. He may not be a genius when it came to women, but he could understand human nature.

"That's right," she continued, her voice quieter, more personal, "you keep treating her like you have after all you both have been through in the last few days, after all of your promises, do you really think she is going to keep following you?"

He opened his mouth to answer in the affirmative, but stopped himself before they could escape, because to be honest, he wasn't so sure now. He hadn't looked at it from the perspective that C.C. was pointing out to him, and it was yet another oversight, something he couldn't predict because humanity was too fickle for predictions when emotional. Instead now, of all times, when he needed Kallen for the next move…

Standing up, he quickly headed for the door, intending to discover the requirements to clear the next task at hand.

00000000000000000000000

Level-headed was just about the last word you could use to describe Kallen Kouzuki at this moment.

Even hours after that simulation, she couldn't temper the righteous fury simmering underneath the surface. Which had ruined her focus in studying the new modification plans that Rakshata had sent her for the Guren Nishiki. Instead, every time she tried to, she was only reminded of what a certain raven-haired amethyst-eyed boy- she cut herself off there, a boy would not do something as monstrous as what he had done- correction, bastard had done to her, causing her to see red in more ways than one.

Which was why she had put everything away and wandered herself down to the small gym on the Tasogare, it wasn't really much, but it had a punching bag, which she was using with a certain degree of ruthlessness, unconsciously placing said offender's face on the bag.

She had been like this for the last half hour, but instead of feeling any better, she only felt more angry and betrayed.

_Partner, right_, she thought harshly as she dug her right fist into the bag, sidestepping and driving a flurry or punches into the bag, wishing once again it was the aristocratic face of the source of her fury.

Stepping back after settling the bag back into position, she walked over and grabbed a towel to wipe her brow.

It wasn't just the fact that he drugged her that infuriated her, it was the betrayal of her trust that burned even deeper.

The door opened to the small gym, causing her to refocus on the new disturbance, only to have her ire burn to the forefront as the source of her anxiety entered the room.

He stopped to lock the door before turning back to her.

"Kallen, can we talk?"

"Not like I have a choice," she replied acidly, "you locked us in here."

Lelouch glanced back at the door then to her.

"Right. I wanted to talk to you about earlier-"

Her fists curled as she fought the urge to fulfill the punishment she had bestowed upon the bag upon Lelouch.

_Calm it, Kallen, as much as you want to throttle him, he's immortal, which means punching him, while fulfilling, will probably result in you hurting yourself._

"You mean drugging me and making me believe you were injured, Tohdoh, all the Holy Swords minus Chiba, and Tamaki died all for a damn test? That's what you are talking about?"

"Yes."

"Well, unless you want to apologize, we're done," she replied irritably.

"Can I ask you a question, Kallen?"

"That's not an apology."

"What do you do when there is an evil you cannot defeat by just means? Do you stain your hands with evil to destroy evil, or do you remain steadfastly just and righteous even if it means surrendering to evil?"

There was that smirk, that all-knowing look that Lelouch always had, and frankly, it sickened her, no, scratch that, it pissed her off to no end. How he was always confident, self-assured, so…

Upon further reflection, nothing would ever be so right as to what she did next, as her first curled up into a ball and drove right into his solar plexus with all of her rage, her hate, and her sorrow thrown into one powerful punch.

Lelouch didn't stand a chance, his eyes widening as the air was driven out of his lungs. Dropping to his knees he could swear he was going to die as he fought for breath. Kallen walked past him and started messing with the door panel, intent on leaving, only to discover that it wasn't accepting her code.

"Dammit, Lelouch, unlock this door," Kallen demanded, her head snapping back to the prostrate immortal.

Lelouch could only gasp for air as his body sought desperately to fill the lungs that seemed to not want to function.

**Well, that was illuminating**, C.C mused in his head, **Kallen has a mean punch when pissed.**

_You could have warned me!_

**I did.**

"Lelouch!"

"Just... answer... the question."

She huffed.

"Fine, if it will get you to let me go. I choose justice, because if you use evil to defeat evil, you become the very evil you were fighting. Whereas if I choose justice, I might lose the fight, but I stand upon my principles, there will be those to continue my example."

Finally able to catch his breath, he slowly got to his feet as he contemplated her answer, perplexed by it. After all, he had expected her to be like him, willing to use any means in order to ensure victory. That was what Geass was, it was akin to turning to an evil genie in order to get their way. So why did she choose justice?

"Then what defines justice," he finally asked, "using your point of view, Kururugi's actions were justified."

Kallen bit her lip, the anger dissipating as her mind chewed on the question. Was it really justice what Suzaku did? If that was true, then wouldn't they truly be the evil? Then everything they had done and intended was necessarily evil.

"Wouldn't you say that what you did was evil, Lelouch?" she found herself asking, "after all, you claim to fight for justice, yet you brazenly took away the free will of anyone who stood against you? In that case, Kururugi would be justified in killing you by your very definition of what you claimed we, as the Black Knights, were."

"That's because I choose to commit evil to destroy the greater evil!"

She flinched, as if he had driven a nail into her, but that pain shifted into something more as she realized exactly what he was getting at, something that had always gnawed at her, despite all of Lelouch's claims of justice, it wasn't ever about freedom, or justice, it was about him, it was never anything BUT him. She had wanted to ignore him when he had claimed it before, she had wanted to simply walk away and accept the fact that Lelouch was being the liar that he was. Instead, no, it was something worse. He was right, but he was wrong. He wasn't committing evil to destroy evil, he WAS evil.

"So that's it, isn't it," she finally asked, more to herself than to him, "that's why you are Zero."

"Indeed."

Her eyes snapped back towards him, as that rage boiled back over, but instead of physically assaulting him, she chose words.

"It's because you're a coward," she stated as caustically as possible, her words a knife, and she intended to dig it into the very man she had worshipped, loved, and had willingly consigned her life to serving, and who had betrayed everything she had believed in.

"Tell me, Kallen, if you'd had the chance to save Naoto, to stop his death and fulfill his dreams, what would you have done to succeed? Or rather... what wouldn't you have done? Anything?"

Kallen paused, taken aback by the question. She was pissed at him for changing the subject, but she knew Lelouch - somehow it related to what they were talking about. When Lelouch honestly wanted to change the subject, he was nowhere near that smooth. So she decided to answer him, just to see what he was getting at... and then realized she didn't have one. She truly didn't know if there was something she'd refuse to do if it meant Naoto would still be alive and Japan was free. Lelouch spoke again - he must have read her thoughts on her face.

"We're not so different after all, are we? I might be evil. I might be a coward. I'm sure I'm a hundred other things, each equally as unflattering. But if that's what it takes to create a world where Nunnally will be free and at peace, I'll do it, just like you would if it was Naoto. And it will hurt, and I'll look back and wonder if all this death really means anything, even though I know the only way to make it meaningful is to keep going until I succeed. But I will keep going, and I'll do whatever I have to, to create a world I can't even live in.

Think of me as a traitor to everything I claim to stand for - it's nothing more and nothing less than I deserve. Yes, Zero's ideals of justice are a lie - I thought you'd have me at least that well figured out. But they're a useful lie, and one that it hurts no-one to believe. Because I will bring them their world of freedom, of peace with and from Britannia. I'll give them what they want, and I'll claim to do it for their reasons. But this isn't some abstract fight for me. This is personal."

"Personal to the point of betraying each other's trust?"

"That was… an oversight. In my zeal to ascertain your capabilities I took certain liberties with you," this caused her eyes to narrow dangerously at his choice of wording, "it was not in my intention to hurt you. But you wanted an explanation and as I've been, shall we say… reminded, we're supposed to be accomplices. So there it is. I won't bother telling you I won't lie to you any more, because we both know that's never going to happen – it's who I am, after all. But I'll do my best only to lie when it's in our best interests. That's all I can give you."

Kallen quietly absorbed the information as her features relaxed, Lelouch quietly gloated in victory at taming the beast. It might have been painful, but he had cleared the obsta-

He was suddenly breathless again as Kallen once again drove her fist into the same spot, causing him to see stars.

"I can handle you lying to me every once in awhile," she hissed, "but if you EVER drug me again, this will be only the beginning of what I will do to you. I am your accomplice, not your pawn. Are we clear?"

Lelouch nodded his head as he held his stomach in his hands.

"Now, is there something else you wanted to talk to me about," she asked, backing away from him, "other than your not-apology."

"Yes," he rasped.

"Well, hurry up."

Recovering as much as he could, he straightened himself.

"We'll be arriving within India's territorial waters within the hour, after that I don't expect long until Rakshata is able to get us an audience with the Maharajah. I want you to use your Geass on him."

"No," she stated bluntly.

He blinked, slightly uncertain what brought this change, "Kallen, we had this discussion already-"

"No, we didn't. All we did discuss was the Geass itself, we didn't discuss its usage."

_No, we didn't,_ Lelouch realized upon review. This could be a problem. _But she is my accomplice, and after all this shit I had best hear out her reasoning.  
_  
"Continue," he finally said, "why do you refuse to do it?"

She paused to collect her thoughts, surprised that Lelouch had not chosen to simply do what he would normally do and double down on his command.

"Because I refuse to use Geass indiscriminately like you have."

"I didn't Geass indiscriminately!"

"Really? Have you about thought the repercussions for every Geass you have done? Every person you controlled like a puppet?"

"Of course I have!"

"Then would you explain the Massacre Princess?"

"My Geass entered a runaway phase and I lost control of it!"

He was not used to being on the defensive in anything and it showed to Kallen, he didn't like defending himself.

"So you can lose control of Geass. Is that random or from repeated use?"

Lelouch grit his teeth as yet again Kallen struck home with unerring accuracy.

"How did Geassing Suzaku work out? Sure it saved you on Shikine Island, but it came back to bite you in the ass, didn't it. It was that very command that has placed us here, hasn't it?"

Yet, even as he tried to defend that decision, she plowed on.

"Have you ever stopped to think what would happen to you and I if someone ever became aware of Geass and used that knowledge against us? Can you even fathom how much damage that would do if it came to light? Imagine the fine-toothed comb everyone would use to go over every action we have made and how easy it would be for our allies to be replaced simply because of the suggestion we Geassed them? Or maybe those who could have a way to simply break ties using that excuse. Have you thought any of that?"

**You know,** C.C's voice was back, **I was wrong about Kallen. I always thought she was this stereotypical fiery redhead with a dose of ditziness.**

She then stopped as Lelouch could hear what sounded like the rustling of paper, before it ended and was replaced by crunching noises.

**She's actually got a pretty good head on her shoulders. Perfect for your Empress.**

_What are you still doing here, C.C.,_ he demanded.

**Well, having a case of the deads has deprived me of my Britannian Soap Operas, but it seems the tension between Kallen and yourself is a suitable replacement. Please, continue, the popcorn is delicious.**

_Eh... how are you eating popcorn?_

_**You'd be surprised at what you can do in the subconscious C.C. mused, Problem, Lelouch?**_

_No!_

**You mad?**

"I'm not mad!"

He then realized, as Kallen had backed away a step that he had yelled that aloud, the look of confusion on her face probably mirroring the dawning horror of his own.

"What was that about?" she demanded.

Quickly trying to do some damage control, he simply decided to roll with it.

"I'm not mad that you're actually questioning me, despite your probable thoughts. I just-"

"No, that was out of the blue," she interrupted him, "what was that?"

Lelouch shook his head.

"That was nothing, just errant thoughts. I'm just tired," he lied.

"Now I know you're lying. You never portray yourself as weak. Out with it, Lelouch."

He sighed, not finding any way to escape this.

"Let's just say a certain former immortal has taken up residence in my head and leave it at that."

Kallen looked at him for the longest of times before she suddenly burst out laughing.

"You mean to say that you have her stuck in your head? I never believed in karma before, but I think for this, I can safely say it has made a believer out of me."

"I wouldn't wish this upon you," he growled irritably.

**I'm hurt, Lelouch.**

"No, you'd just spike my drink."

"Moving on," he decided to cut his losses and change the subject before any further physical harm befell him, "I can understand your reluctance and I can see some of the wisdom, however, being reluctant in using Geass could hurt us in the more immediate timeframe."

"Then let me make the choice Lelouch or do you not trust me?"

"There's too much riding on this Kallen, if we can't get the Maharajah to side with us..."

"Then I will use Geass."

You're not going to win this Lelouch, C.C. warned, not that it was needed, he had already come to that conclusion.

"Very well," he finally said, "but if this fails then it is solely your fault."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence."

Before he could say anything more, the door behind him opened up to reveal Tohdoh as he stepped in.

"Kallen... Lelouch, we've entered Indian waters and have been contacted by representatives of the Maharajah concerning a meeting."

That was surprising, Lelouch observed, he had expected at least a day of having Rakshata send out feelers. This could be good or bad, depending on what was causing this. Which made sense as to why Tohdoh would be here, wouldn't it?

"Is there anything else?"

"No. They only to see the upper ranks of the Black Knights."

"And what's Kirihara saying?"

"He'll arrive tomorrow."

Not soon enough. We'll have to make do without him. He then looked to Kallen.

"I know," she said, "what I said still stands."

Knowing discretion was the better part of valor he turned back to Tohdoh.

"Is there anything else?

"There is one thing. It is in the future, but since you're so focused on improving Kallen, why don't you focus on improving yourself?"

"How so?"

"Namely your physical capabilities or lack thereof."

He could almost hear C.C.'s laughter ringing throughout his head as he felt the urge to flee. Physical activities were the bane of his existence, his strength was intelligence not brawn, how can Tohdoh even think about trying to improve his strength when he was the perfect physical specimen of a wet noodle.

"As much as I would probably benefit from a physical regimen," he lied, "unfortunately due to my current circumstances, it would probably be pointless to do so."

**...That may not be true Lelouch.**

_What?_

**Please. Did you really think I order all of those pizzas just to bankrupt you?**

_I thought you more did it to constantly remind me what an annoyance you can be._

**That really hurts, you know. But no, outside of my undying love for all things pizza, the reason I require such a large amount of sustenance is because I have an abnormally high metabolism. Of course, as much as I loathe to admit it, my weight did vary back and forth just a bit, so needless to say, you could improve your physique. I think Kallen would appreciate it.**

_I swear you will be the death of me, C.C._

**That's somewhat hard to do, since you technically can't die, now can you, Lelouch.**

He honestly wished he could provide the formerly immortal, now perpetually demonic witch a scowl. But of course that wasn't possible, as C.C.'s chuckle confirmed, so instead he did the next best thing he could, he started trying to tune her out.

"Still, Lelouch, even if it may be a pointless effort," Tohdoh continued, "I feel I would be derelict in my duty of ensuring the Black Knights' continuance if I did not attempt to improve your physical capabilities now that you no longer have your… partner to pilot you around in the Gawain."

Here however, he could scowl, which he did almost immediately. It was becoming readily apparent that since his unmasking it seemed everyone was willing to run roughshod over him when they thought they were right, and for some damnable cosmic reason, they were more often than not were now.

"Fine," he huffed irritably, looking at Tohdoh and Kallen, "we'll start working on this after we deal with the Maharajah. Since I'm now going to have to pilot the Gawain myself, I need to be in shape, don't I?"

Almost immediately he regretted his decision as he noted both Tohdoh and Kallen's predatory smirks.

* * *

A/N: Well, I decided to break the planned street-date on the latest chapter because of delays in the inaugural chapter to the sidestories. Don't be too worried, "Badr Day" will probably be released by next week at the very latest, I just figured you were all chomping at the bit to read the latest chapter.

This has probably been the hardest chapter to write for me yet, which doesn't exactly bode well for the continuation of the story. Nothing to exactly worry about at this time, but it has me leery, I'll probably need to take a small break to recharge in the near future though.

Moving on to credits, I would like to thank Magery for the support in a section, but I would like to extend an even heartier thank you to SkyeElf for the Beta support she has provided. It means a lot to have someone calling me out for my fails in writing.

I will be taking a short hiatus though to go back and clean up the previous chapters so they better mesh. So when I post up the next chapter, feel free to mosey on back and take a gander to see the small changes made.

Anyways, short A/N, so I'll just leave you with a request to leave a review, tell me how good or bad I'm doing or any questions. I usually answer within a day's time unless I'm really busy. Until next people.


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